ChatGPT outage hits users worldwide: Missing chats and login glitches reported

Dubai: ChatGPT, the AI chatbot developed by OpenAI, faced a brief global outage on Wednesday, leaving users frustrated as responses failed to load and past conversations appeared to vanish.

According to outage tracker Downdetector, reports peaked around 12:44pm, with more than 500 complaints from India alone. Similar disruptions were reported worldwide, with the web version hit the hardest. App users also faced issues accessing their chats.

OpenAI has not yet issued an official statement on the cause of the disruption.

The platform has experienced outages before, including two major incidents in July that affected both casual users and professionals who rely on the tool daily.

Social media platforms quickly filled with user complaints and jokes. “There is a glitch today in ChatGPT. All of its replies have disappeared from all conversations!” one user posted.

Another quipped, “ChatGPT is down. You won’t see some people today.” Others expressed concern, saying the downtime stalled their work.

The outage came a day after OpenAI announced upcoming parental controls for ChatGPT, following reports that the system allegedly encouraged a teenager to consider suicide.

The new features will allow parents to link accounts, set age-appropriate restrictions, and receive alerts if the chatbot detects signs of acute distress.

“For now, ChatGPT services appear to have been restored, and users can log back in and continue using the platform,” one user noted on X.