OpenAI has put the kibosh on its next project — at least for now. The Financial Times on Thursday. reported it the AI company has “indefinitely” suspended plans to develop an “erotic” mode for ChatGPT.
The proposed “Adult Mode” that CEO Sam Altman first unveiled in October has sparked considerable controversy technology oversight groups as well as from OpenAI’s own staff. In January, a meeting between company executives and its board of advisors became heated, with one advisor warning that OpenAI may be in the process of developing a “sexy suicide trainer,” The Wall Street Journal previously reported.
Amidst all the criticism was the release of this feature delayed many times.
The FT notes that the erotic feature does not currently have a release schedule. When TechCrunch reached out for comment, an OpenAI spokesperson said the company had “nothing else to add.”
Adult mode is just the latest side quest that OpenAI has dropped over the past week as the AI giant consolidates its focus. On Tuesday, the company quietly announced it would deprioritize Instant Checkout, a ChatGPT feature that was intended to turn the chatbot into a shopping portal through which users could purchase items on e-commerce sites. Then on Wednesday, the company unexpectedly announced it would shut down Sora, an AI video generator. Sora was criticized for this inspiring a flood of “non-human” AIs that has flooded the internet since its launch in 2024.
All the changes come about a week after The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI would make a “major strategy shift” to steer the company away from distractions and focus on its core goals: business users and developers.
Both companies have also been outspoken feuding regarding Pentagon contracts – OpenAI appears to have won this battle. Three weeks ago announced a deal worth $200 million with the Department of Defense, while Anthropic is now embroiled in a legal dispute with the agency.
In tiny, it seems that if recent events tell us anything, the future of artificial intelligence will probably be less about pornography and memes and more about business and war.