Description
AGCAI Generated, Human Reviewed
ChatGPT review
OpenAI’s conversational AI — the most widely deployed AI assistant in the world, now running on GPT-5.4. Six tiers from free to $200/month. One of the most commercially important, ethically contested AI products of the decade.
ChatGPT is the consumer-facing AI assistant built on OpenAI’s GPT model series. Since its 2022 launch it has become the reference point for general-purpose AI — used for writing, coding, analysis, research, image generation, and agentic task completion. As of March 2026, it runs on GPT-5.4, OpenAI’s most capable model to date.
The product has grown from a single free chatbot into a six-tier subscription platform. That expansion has come with increasing ethical complexity: advertising introduced to lower tiers in February 2026, documented use in U.S. military operations, and an ongoing dispute over safeguard removal. Those issues are documented in the Cases library.
Conversational reasoning
Multi-turn dialogue with persistent context. GPT-5.4 Thinking available on Plus and above for step-by-step reasoning on complex problems.
Deep Research
Autonomous multi-source research that synthesises findings into structured reports. 10 runs/month on Plus; 250/month on Pro.
Image generation (DALL·E)
Text-to-image generation integrated directly into the chat interface. Available on Plus and above.
Agent Mode + Codex
Autonomous task execution — browsing, writing files, running code. Plus and above only.
Memory
Persists context across conversations. Configurable and deletable in account settings.
Custom GPTs
Build and deploy specialised AI assistants with custom instructions, knowledge, and tools. Plus and above.
Ads on Free and Go tiers: OpenAI began serving ads in the US on both plans from February 9, 2026. Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise remain ad-free. All prices USD.
Free
$0/mo
Limited GPT-5.2 access. Ads in US. Suitable for occasional use only.
- GPT-5.2 (tight limits)
- Basic image generation
- Limited memory
- Ads (US)
Go
$8/mo
More messages and uploads. Ads included. Missing all advanced features.
- GPT-5.2 Instant (more msgs)
- More uploads + images
- No Sora, Codex, Agent Mode
- Ads included
Plus
$20/mo
Full feature suite. Unchanged price for three years. Ad-free.
- GPT-5.4 + GPT-5.4 Thinking
- Deep Research (10/mo)
- Sora video generation
- Codex + Agent Mode
- DALL·E image generation
- Ad-free
Pro
$200/mo
GPT-5.4 Pro mode. 250 Deep Research runs/month. Extended context.
- GPT-5.4 Pro (enhanced reasoning)
- Deep Research (250/mo)
- 400K reasoning context window
- Near-unlimited usage
- Ad-free
Business
$25/user/mo
Annual billing. Secure team workspace with admin controls.
- Full Plus features per user
- Data not used for training
- SAML SSO + MFA
- SOC 2 Type 2 aligned
- Admin console
Enterprise
Custom
Contact OpenAI sales. Full governance and compliance infrastructure.
- Extended context (250 pages)
- SCIM + RBAC + EKM
- Data residency options
- 24/7 support + SLAs
- GDPR/CCPA compliance tools
ChatGPT is the most thoroughly documented AI product for both capability and harm. OpenAI publishes safety research and maintains usage policies. It has also introduced advertising to lower tiers, been implicated in military targeting workflows, and faced credible reporting about enforcement gaps between stated policy and observed conduct.
The introduction of ads in February 2026 is a material governance change: the company controlling what the model says now has a financial relationship with advertisers. A full Ethics Score review is in the Ethical AI Reviews queue.
QUESTIONS
Is ChatGPT free to use?
Yes. The Free tier gives access to GPT-5.2 at no cost. Since February 2026, the Free tier in the US includes advertising. For professional use, Plus at $20/month is the minimum for consistent daily use.
What is the difference between ChatGPT Plus and Pro?
Plus ($20/month) gives the full feature suite including GPT-5.4 Thinking, Deep Research (10/month), Sora, Codex, and Agent Mode — ad-free. Pro ($200/month) adds GPT-5.4 Pro mode, 250 Deep Research runs per month, and near-unlimited usage. The 10x price difference is only justified for users who consistently hit Plus limits.
Does ChatGPT use my data to train its models?
On Free, Go, and Plus tiers, conversations may be used to train OpenAI’s models unless you opt out in Settings. On Business tier, data is not used for training by default. On Enterprise, full data governance controls apply.
Is ChatGPT safe to use for sensitive work?
Not on Free, Go, or Plus without explicit opt-out from training. Business tier provides the data-privacy guarantee by default. For regulated industries, only Enterprise with custom terms provides sufficient control.
