OpenAI still not training GPT-5, Sam Altman says

OpenAI is still not training GPT-5, months after the Microsoft-backed startup pledged to not work on the successor to GPT-4 "for some time" after many industry executives and academics expressed concerns about the fast-rate of advancements by Sam Altman's large language models.

"We have a lot of work to do before we start that model," Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, said at a conference hosted by Indian newspaper Economic Times. "We're working on the new ideas that we think we need for it, but we are certainly not close to it to start."

Altman also pushed back on the concerns from some of the most vocal voices on the further advancements at OpenAI, saying a more meaningful way to evaluate potential dangers involves external audits and red-teaming and safety tests.

"When we finished GPT-4, it took us more than six months until we were ready to release it."

The trip to India is part of Altman's attempt to meet with lawmakers and industry players globally and build confidence in OpenAI's willingness to work with regulators and proactively urge them to start thinking about any potential abuse and other downside of AI proliferation.