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ChatGPT: what’s new and our verdict

OpenAI's assistant for chat, writing, images, voice and agent-style work.

Official site

Release Ruler for ChatGPT: marked at its Reported release date on the timeline of every AI model we track.

At a glance

Evidence
Reported
Released
Oct 20, 2026
Last verified
Oct 25, 2026
Pricing
Official page, dated
Best for
writing, images, small business

Evidence and ranking

Evidence behind this verdict

  1. Sources read2 cited sources, latest fetched Oct 25, 2026. (done)
  2. Facts re-checkedLast verified Oct 25, 2026. (done)
  3. Not run by us yetWe have not run it, so this is labelled Reported. (not done)

Where we rank it (editorial)

Editorial picks, not benchmark scores. How we rank.

Pricing: Plan prices read from OpenAI's pricing docs on 2026-10-25. (checked 2026-10-25)

Our verdict

Still the broadest all-round assistant; the October updates matter most if you write documents, decks or work with audio.

Good for

  • Writers who need drafts, decks and meeting notes in one place
  • Teams already on ChatGPT Business or Enterprise
  • People who want image generation (Images 2.5) in the same app

Skip if

  • You want strict data isolation by default (check settings)
  • You need features only on Pro plans and are on a lower tier

Status: Reported. This write-up is based on official release notes and docs; we have not run this release ourselves yet.

Best for

What’s new

OpenAI's Oct 20 release notes add locked chats, ChatGPT Slides for Pro, Business and Enterprise users in Space, and updates to GPT-6 Pro; earlier in October came GPT-6 with Intelligent UI (Oct 7) and audio uploads (Oct 6).

  • Oct 20: Locked chats hide selected conversations from history and search behind a 4-digit PIN or device authentication; rolling out to Free, Go, Plus and Pro.
  • Oct 20: ChatGPT Slides lets you create decks and collaborate in Space, with export to PowerPoint, PDF or Google Slides on the web; for eligible Pro, Business and Enterprise users.
  • Oct 20: GPT-6 Pro in chat gets faster responses, better tool use and parallel agents for Pro users.
  • Oct 7: GPT-6 with Intelligent UI can mix text, visuals and interactive elements such as calculators; Plus, Pro, Business and Enterprise use GPT-6 Sol; Free and Go use GPT-6 Luna.
  • Oct 6: Upload audio files for transcripts and summaries on paid plans.
  • Sep 29: A new Pro 500 plan at $500/month; Pro 200 at $200/month is available again. OpenAI's pricing docs now list Pro plans at $100, $200 or $500 per month.

How to set it up: Use ChatGPT for a first draft and a deck

Steps come from the vendor's own pages or docs. We have not run them ourselves.

  1. Draft in chat

    Describe the document, audience and tone. The June release notes describe full-screen writing blocks for essays, reports and blog posts, which you can save to your Library.

    https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6825453-chatgpt-release-notes

  2. Add a source

    Upload a file or audio recording (paid plans for audio) and ask for a summary or structured notes.

  3. Turn it into slides

    If you have access to Space, ask ChatGPT to create a presentation, edit it, and export to PowerPoint, PDF or Google Slides.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Very broad feature set
  • Detailed dated release notes
  • Word, Excel and PowerPoint add-ins

Cons

  • Many features roll out gradually and vary by plan, region and workspace
  • Models, plans and limits change often
  • Custom GPTs are planned to be retired in favor of plugins

Alternatives and comparisons

  • Claude: Anthropic's assistant app, with Claude Duet as a new proactive agent in research preview.
  • Gemini Notebook: Source-grounded notebook that turns your documents into answers, slides, video overviews and study aids.
  • Midjourney: Image (and video) generation with the alpha.midjourney.com web app.
  • Copy.ai: Go-to-market AI platform now priced by workflow credits.

See all alternatives to ChatGPT

OpenAI models we track

All models · Releases by month

FAQ

What did ChatGPT add on Oct 20, 2026?

Locked chats, ChatGPT Slides in Space for eligible paid workspaces, GPT-Live-1.1 voices, and updates to GPT-6 Pro.

How much do ChatGPT plans cost?

Per OpenAI's pricing docs (fetched Oct 25, 2026): Free $0, Go $8/month, Plus $20/month, Pro plans at $100, $200 or $500/month, Business $20 per user per month billed annually ($25 billed monthly, 2+ users), plus Enterprise and Edu on request.

Can ChatGPT summarize audio?

Yes. Audio uploads are available with paid ChatGPT subscriptions and workspaces, per the Oct 6 note.

What we have not verified

  • Writing quality compared with other assistants (not tested)
  • Whether new features are available on your account

Sources

Last verified · Agentic Weekly

Part of the week of Oct 19, 2026 archive.

Guides for ChatGPT

Latest news about ChatGPT

  • Copy.ai: Go-to-market AI platform now priced by workflow credits.
  • FLUX (Black Forest Labs): Black Forest Labs' FLUX image models, available through an API with per-image pricing; the flux GitHub repository is Apache-2.0.
  • Freepik AI: Stock library with AI suite and credit plans; credits valid for 1 year.

How to cite this page

Agentic Weekly, "ChatGPT: what's new, verdict & setup", last updated 2026-10-25, https://theagenticweekly.com/tools/chatgpt

Keep the Reported or Tested label when you quote a verdict. Plain-text version: https://theagenticweekly.com/tools/chatgpt.md. More for AI assistants: /ai, /tools.json, /llms.txt.