OpenAI upgrading ChatGPT with all-new voice mode experience, watch here

A shiny new model isn’t the only upgrade coming to ChatGPT this week. In addition to GPT-5.6’s release tomorrow, OpenAI is announcing an all-new ChatGPT voice mode experience as well.

Next-gen ChatGPT Voice mode is coming

OpenAI is announcing and demoing the next generation of ChatGPT’s voice mode.

Presenters in today’s livestream include Kundan Kumar, Yuchen Zhang, Ehsan Asdar, and Rithesh Kumar.

Here’s the livestream video so you can watch from home:

OpenAI’s new ChatGPT Voice mode uses GPT-Live-1.

The new voice mode is a major upgrade around speaking naturally with ChatGPT.

For example, you can talk over it and it will listen while it’s still speaking. It can also access web search for intelligence. It also better understands when to stop talking or listen for longer periods of time.

GPT-Live is behind the ChatGPT Voice upgrade

“We’re launching GPT‑Live, a new generation of voice models that make talking with AI feel much more like having a real conversation,” the company says.

“GPT‑Live is built on a full-duplex architecture, meaning it can listen and speak at the same time. During conversations, GPT‑Live can show it’s paying attention with phrases like “mhmm” or “yeah”, engage in quick back-and-forth, or just stay quiet when you need a moment to think. The result is a voice experience that is refreshingly easy to talk to.”

Users will be able to set the intelligence level with the new GPT-Live-powered voice experience as well.

OpenAI has two GPT-Live models to start

OpenAI adds that GPT-Live consists of two versions to start: GPT-Live-1 and GPT-Live-1-mini, which are both rolling out to ChatGPT users around the world today.

This includes support on iOS, Android, and the web. ChatGPT’s desktop app pulled back on voice mode several months ago.

GPT-Live-1-mini is the default voice mode for free users, while paid customers of all tiers will use GPT-Live-1.

“We’ve optimized GPT‑Live for some of the most popular languages in ChatGPT,” OpenAI says. “For certain languages, the model may have a non-native accent or gaps in fluency. We’re actively working to improve the experience across languages.”

The company also notes that GPT-Live doesn’t support voice with video or screen sharing in ChatGPT at launch, but these features were in development. For now, they’ll require legacy ChatGPT Voice mode.

Learn more about the new GPT-Live technology and ChatGPT Voice here.

Developers interested in integrating GPT-Live through OpenAI’s API can share interest here.

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