ChatGPT is unavailable for many users (Update: It is now back online)

      Thousands of users are reporting service disruptions as OpenAI works to fix "elevated error rates" that are hindering logins, voice mode, and response generation today.

      Update: As of 1:17 PM PST, ChatGPT appears to be operational again, successfully generating responses and accessing uploaded files.

      The initial report is as follows.

      If you're having trouble accessing ChatGPT today, February 3, 2026, you're not alone. OpenAI's main chatbot is currently facing problems described as "elevated error rates for ChatGPT users."

      Users started reporting the outage on Down Detector at approximately 12:08 PM PST. As of this report, over 12,900 incidents have been documented on the platform, with 99% attributed to ChatGPT.

      Down Detector

      More than 13,000 reported service interruptions

      OpenAI has acknowledged the situation. "We have determined that users are experiencing elevated errors for affected services," the company states on its official OpenAI Status page. They are actively working on a resolution.

      Although OpenAI describes the issue as ongoing for 10 minutes (at the time of writing), users have been reporting it on Down Detector for over 30 minutes. Among APIs, ChatGPT, and Sora, the chatbot currently has the lowest uptime at 98.67%.

      OpenAI

      According to OpenAI, users may face difficulties logging into their ChatGPT accounts, chatting with the bot, uploading files, or utilizing voice mode.

      ChatGPT is failing to generate responses

      I can confirm that the chatbot is not currently producing responses, although I am not experiencing any issues logging into my account.

      OpenAI

      ChatGPT is not the only AI tool to have faced challenges recently. Anthropic's Claude also experienced an outage just over a week ago.

      Numerous users encountered a "This isn't working right now" error message, and some had trouble with the login process during the downtime.

      Outside of AI chatbots, TikTok also faced extended periods of service interruptions soon after finalizing its US operations deal. Additionally, two days ago, X experienced downtime lasting a couple of hours, impacting thousands of users.

      ChatGPT

      On a more positive note for AI chatbots, OpenAI recently launched the ChatGPT Codex app for macOS. Moreover, Apple has announced that Anthropic and OpenAI models will be available for agentic coding on the Xcode platform following the latest update.

      For over five years, Shikhar has consistently simplified developments in consumer technology and presented them…

      The competitive landscape of AI is so intense that chatbot users are now being rewarded with real cash, iPhones, and televisions.

      With billions of dollars at stake and Apple closely monitoring, China's AI leaders are turning user acquisition into a high-stakes giveaway competition ahead of the anticipated release of their next-generation models.

      AI titans in China, including Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu, are distributing "red envelopes" or cash incentives to attract more users to their chatbots ahead of the rumored debut of new AI models later this month (as reported by Techxplore citing AFP).

      For example, Alibaba has allocated a budget of CNY 3 billion (approximately USD 430 million) to provide cash prizes to users of its AI app, Qwen. This promotional initiative kicks off on February 6, 2026, just in time for the Chinese New Year.

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