After a major outage on Thursday, ChatGPT is back online, following reports of access issues from over 3,700 users. OpenAI has confirmed that the issue has been resolved, though the cause remains unclear. The disruption has led some users to explore alternatives like Google’s Gemini and Claude AI.
ChatGPT, OpenAI’s widely used AI chatbot, is back online after a major outage on Thursday that affected users globally.
The San Francisco-based company acknowledged the disruption on its status page, confirming that a fix was applied at 8:39 PM IST. OpenAI assured users that it was “monitoring the results” after the issue was resolved, but the cause of the outage remains unknown.
Thousands of users affected globally
More than 3,700 users reported problems on Downdetector, with many unable to access the platform between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM IST. Those who tried to use the service encountered error messages, including “the web server reported a bad gateway error” and the unsettling “Error 503: Service Temporarily Unavailable.”
Indian cities among the worst hit
Downdetector’s heat map highlighted the cities most affected by the outage, showing areas with the highest concentration of user-submitted reports over the past 24 hours. In India, cities like Hyderabad, Jaipur, Delhi, Agra, and Lucknow experienced significant disruptions.
This outage marks the third major disruption for ChatGPT since December, sparking concerns about the reliability of the AI service.
Humorous memes flood social media
Social media quickly filled with humorous memes as users reacted to the unexpected downtime. One X user (@KingMuss) joked, “Bruh ChatGPT is down again??? During the workday? So you’re telling me I have to… THINK?!” Another user humorously remarked, “ChatGPT is down and I’m coding right now.”
Users explore alternatives to ChatGPT
As ChatGPT encountered issues, users started exploring alternatives. Google’s Gemini, an advanced AI chatbot, became a popular option, offering real-time information through Google search. Claude AI, developed by Anthropic, also drew attention for its focus on safety and creativity, while Perplexity AI was praised for delivering clear and accurate responses by combining AI with search technology.
Despite the outage, many users remain optimistic that OpenAI will address the underlying issues and ensure smoother performance in the future. However, the recurring disruptions have sparked a wider conversation about the reliability of AI tools and their impact on users’ productivity.
