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ChatGPT's adult mode, which was first brought up in October, now seems to have a planned timeline for its release. At that time, Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, discussed the idea of “treating adult users as users,” suggesting that individuals over the legal age would gain access to more adult-oriented features from their AI chatbot. Now, according to a report, this adult mode is expected to be launched in early 2026, assuming OpenAI successfully develops its system to verify ages by then. As noted by The Verge, OpenAI's Applications CEO, Fidji Simo, recently informed the press that ChatGPT's adult mode could debut in the first quarter of 2026. With this launch, the platform would join Grok and many smaller AI services that provide “not safe for work” (NSFW) materials to users. However, there is a limitation. The AI company will not enable this feature unless it can be certain that only adults are using it. To achieve this, OpenAI is working on an AI-driven age verification system instead of relying on the current “opt-in” trust method.

Previously, OpenAI talked about its age verification administrative tools, which utilize specialized large language models (LLMs) to determine a user's age based on their activity within the app and other indicators. Simo reportedly indicated that this technology is still in the early testing phase. It is believed to be utilized in certain countries to identify teenagers who mistakenly claim to be adults. If these trials go well, then ChatGPT's adult mode will be launched in early 2026, with the United States likely to be the first country to access this feature. It is also anticipated that this option will only be available to paying subscribers. In October, Altman announced that the company is working on a new variety of features exclusively for adults, allowing them to engage with the AI chatbot in more ways. While these features were not specifically listed, they might involve a flirty version of ChatGPT that responds to more adult-themed conversations. The CEO also hinted at the availability of “erotica” for verified adults.

This announcement came after many users expressed their disappointment over the discontinuation of the GPT-4o model following the launch of GPT-5. The previous version was considered to have a more conversational style and felt more “human-like.”