OpenAI has released its new GPT-5.2 model (a few days after it was expected) and ChatGPT 5.2 has been rolled out in tandem. The new model comes relatively quickly after ChatGPT-5.1, but while the last update tried to restore the charm and personality that many felt was absent in ChatGPT-5, the latest update focuses on more ascetic goals.
OpenAI is pitching GPT-5.2 as a model that can explain itself better, work more reliably, and handle long, complicated, even messy tasks. But OpenAI knows that the average person doesn’t care about benchmark charts or academic papers touting the new model’s skills. So the company encourages people to think of the major technical improvements as a gateway to everyday usability. Like its predecessor, ChatGPT-5.2 comes in three variants that increase in size and potential capabilities: Instant, Thinking and Pro.
As generative artificial intelligence has moved from experimental novelty to daily habit, people rely on ChatGPT for all sorts of academic and professional needs, including many that no one at OpenAI imagined. ChatGPT-5.2 is built to hold up under that weight, so here’s what you should know about the latest experience.
GPT-5.2 is here! Available today in ChatGPT and API. It is the smartest commonly available model in the world, and is especially good at performing knowledge work tasks in the real world.11 December 2025
1. Thinking clearly
OpenAI showed tests showing that GPT-5.2 performs at or above the level of human experts across a wide range of tasks involving large amounts of information, a first for OpenAI’s models. On the GDPval evaluation, which tests 44 different professional work categories from finance to law to consulting, GPT-5.2 Thinking beats or ties top professionals on nearly three-quarters of tasks such as creating spreadsheets and presentations as well as more complex analyses.
The most significant change is the model’s ability to coordinate multi-step reasoning. GPT-5.2 Thinking can take a complicated question, break it down into parts, plan the route through the problem, and provide an answer that reflects a coherent chain of thought. It’s not just predicting the next plausible phrase, but the next plausible multi-day project.
You might notice it come into play when ChatGPT explains a concept more cleanly than you might expect, or stays on track through a long conversation, or just when it offers step-by-step logic that actually stays coherent.
Larger memory
The clearer thinking is related to the memory upgrade offered by GPT-5.2. OpenAI says that GPT-5.2 Thinking achieves near-perfect accuracy when tracking information across hundreds of thousands of words. You can drop an entire workbook, a long report, a legal contract, a scientific paper, or lengthy transcripts into ChatGPT, and instead of losing the thread halfway through, the model now keeps track of the details and treats it all as interconnected.
If you’re a student, you can upload multiple readings and ask for a comparative analysis, or load a small business’s financial reports and ask for trends or strategy suggestions. The model can handle the kind of multi-file context that overwhelmed previous versions.
The memory upgrade also expands its vision. ChatGPT-5.2 is much better at understanding diagrams, charts and software. It can also better see details in blurry or complex images. Longer memory isn’t the headline feature that usually gets people excited, but it could be a major factor in how people feel about ChatGPT-5.2.
More reliable
The third crucial improvement in ChatGPT-5.2 is reliability. Hallucinations are much less frequent with GPT-5.2 than with GPT-5.1, dropping by 30% according to OpenAI. Errors still happen, but you don’t have to spend so much time checking and fixing them.
The improved reliability is also evident in how it uses tools. OpenAI cited an example of a messy customer service scenario involving a delayed flight, missed connections, an unexpected overnight stay, and requests for medical seats. GPT-5.2 rebooked the traveler with the correct seat and got them compensation, while GPT-5.1 fell apart midway.
A ChatGPT model that is less likely to go off course during a chat is a model that people will like and trust more, but OpenAI also went to great lengths to make GPT-5.2 more reliable as a secure conversational partner. ChatGPT-5.2 will respond more appropriately when discussing things like mental health and emotional turmoil, with better and more supportive suggestions.
ChatGPT-5.2 is rolling out gradually across ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Go, Business and Enterprise subscriptions, with access to GPT-5.1 ending in three months for anyone who uses AI tools a lot. The latest model will likely feel like an AI interlocutor better at imitating thoughtfulness. ChatGPT-5.2 isn’t flashy, but people who want an AI that thinks as carefully as it talks will likely be pleased.
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