OpenAI is retiring GPT-4o and three other legacy models tomorrow, likely for good

OpenAI is dropping several older AI models from ChatGPT on February 13, 2026: GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, and o4-mini. The models will stick around in the API for now. The company says it comes down to usage: only 0.1 percent of users still pick GPT-4o on any given day.

There's a reason OpenAI is being so careful about GPT-4o specifically: the model has a complicated past. OpenAI already killed it once back in August 2025, only to bring it back for paying subscribers after users pushed back hard. Some people had grown genuinely attached to the model, which was known for its complacent, people-pleasing communication style. OpenAI addresses this head-on at the end of the post:

We know that losing access to GPT‑4o will feel frustrating for some users, and we didn’t make this decision lightly. Retiring models is never easy, but it allows us to focus on improving the models most people use today.

OpenAI

OpenAI points to GPT-5.1 and GPT-5.2 as improved successors that incorporate feedback from GPT-4o users. People can now tweak ChatGPT's tone and style, things like warmth and enthusiasm. But that probably won't be enough for the GPT-4o faithful.