Sam Altman reveals GPT-5.5 helped plan its own launch event

Sam Altman consulted the new model powering ChatGPT about its preferred features for a celebration event.

During a talk at Stripe Sessions, the CEO of OpenAI described asking GPT-5.5 for its preferences regarding a launch party.

The AI model suggested a "beautiful array of things" for "enhancing the party flow," including hosting on May 5, keeping speeches brief, and having human creators propose a toast (while the AI specified it did not want to do so itself).

GPT-5.5 also recommended creating a central platform to collect suggestions for GPT 5.6 and integrate these ideas into the model.

"We're definitely going for it," Altman confirmed. "But it's a rather peculiar thing."

He wasn't by himself. John Collison, CEO of Stripe, shared his story of allowing his company's internal agent $20 to purchase whatever it wanted online. It went ahead to buy an HTTP design via the Gumroad e-commerce design platform.

"Wow," Altman reacted.

GPT-5.5, which was unveiled in late April, stands as OpenAI's latest advanced model. 

Its design aims to manage more intricate, multi-step tasks and acts more like a self-sufficient assistant compared to previous versions. 

Additionally, it's promoted to be faster and better at maintaining information about the user.

Those advancements are already transforming user interaction with AI, Altman noted — spanning from task automation to querying a model about how it prefers to be honored.

Altman's party scenario followed a wider conversation about how more capable AI systems can demonstrate almost human-like behaviours, such as requesting gifts or purchasing tools online. He characterised these interactions as "unique unexpected behaviors."

"Some of these things feel slightly odd," he expressed.

Speaking of curious behavior, OpenAI and Sam Altman have been part of internet meme discussions concerning their prior models' fixation with goblins and gremlins. 

Starting with GPT-5.1, the AI developed a penchant for talking about mythical creatures, causing the company to insert multiple coding instructions to inhibit reference to them unless absolutely relevant to a user's query.

"Refrain from discussing goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or any other animals or creatures unless it's absolutely pertinent to the user's question," the source code states.