Kurt Knutsson reviews OpenAI GPT-5.2 model

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has made unusually rapid progress in 2025. According to the company, it released GPT-5 in August, followed by GPT-5.1 in November. Now, just a few weeks later, GPT-5.2 has been released with the familiar claims that it is the smartest and most capable ChatGPT yet.

At first glance, its rapid rollout may seem surprising. But there is context behind this. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly called for a “code red” within the company and urged teams to move faster on improving ChatGPT. This push comes as competition heats up. Google recently released Gemini 3, which outperforms ChatGPT on several AI benchmarks and provides more robust image generation. At the same time, Anthropic’s Claude continues to progress rapidly.

In this context, GPT-5.2 appears to be a strategic response rather than a routine upgrade. So what actually changed in GPT-5.2 and why does OpenAI say it matters?

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What exactly is GPT-5.2

GPT-5.2 is the latest version of OpenAI’s flagship 5-series major language models. Like its predecessor, it includes two default variables. GPT-5.2 Instant is designed for casual chats and web searches. GPT-5.2 Thinking is for more complex tasks such as long chains of reasoning and multi-step problem solving. These two models are now the default model for all ChatGPT users, including free users. They completely replace GPT-5.1 Instant and Thinking. If you’re using ChatGPT today, you’re already using GPT-5.2, whether you realize it or not.

OpenAI says what GPT-5 brings to ChatGPT

At the same time, OpenAI calls GPT-5 “Expert intelligence for everyone.” The company says GPT-5 provides stronger performance in math, science, finance, law and other complex subjects. In OpenAI’s view, ChatGPT now acts more like a team of on-demand experts than a simple chatbot. To support this claim, OpenAI points to practical examples. These include better coding help, more expressive writing support, clearer health explanations, and improved security and accuracy. The company showcases use cases such as creating app code, writing speech, explaining medications, and fixing errors in user-submitted images. Theoretically, GPT-5.2 is built on the same foundation. But while OpenAI emphasizes deeper thinking and more reliable answers, these gains remain subtle for many everyday users.

What new features does GPT-5.2 add?

Here’s the short answer. None. GPT-5.2 does not introduce new tools, interfaces or header features. Instead, OpenAI describes a series of behind-the-scenes improvements that are supposed to make ChatGPT faster, smarter, and more capable. According to OpenAI, GPT-5.2 performs better in:

• building presentations
• Completion of complex projects
• Create a spreadsheet
• Understanding long context windows
• Interpreting images
• Using tools more effectively

Kurt Knutsson reviews the new features in ChatGPT-5.2. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

OpenAI also released new benchmarks showing that GPT-5.2 outperforms GPT-5.1 and competes with models by small margins. However, big numbers on the charts may not always mean noticeable improvements for real users.

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Why is it difficult to test chatbot improvements?

Evaluating chatbot upgrades is harder than it seems. Even if the prompts remain the same, the answers can vary greatly. A model may excel at one task and have difficulty with an almost identical task a few minutes later. Moreover, OpenAI’s 5-series models are already performing at or near the top of the field. Once performance starts to get this high, it becomes difficult to detect meaningful gains. With this in mind, we tested GPT-5.2 and it behaved almost identically to GPT-5.1 in most tests.

Why don’t comparisons tell the whole story?

OpenAI’s benchmarks show modest gains for GPT-5.2. This is important for researchers and developers working at scale. However, even advanced users may struggle to see the practical benefits. Other companies offered clearer upgrades. Google’s Gemini Nano Banana Pro shows clear gains in AI image rendering and editing. These improvements are easy to test and verify by anyone. By contrast, the changes in GPT-5.2 feel abstract. They are mostly found on paper rather than in daily use.

What does this mean to you?

There are very few downsides to using GPT-5.2 if you pay for ChatGPT. It replaces GPT-5.1 in the model line-up and generally performs the same, at least in daily use. Free users don’t have much choice either, as model access is automatic. For most people, this experience feels familiar and stable.

For programmers and those who use it for work, the picture changes slightly. Initial pricing details indicate that GPT-5.2 could be around 40 percent more expensive per million tokens than GPT-5.1, depending on the usage tier and access method. This makes testing important before committing at scale.

ChatGPT-5.2 works well but may not sound exciting, writes Kurt Knutsson. (Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

In short, GPT-5.2 works just fine. It just might not sound exciting.

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Kurt’s important takeaways

GPT-5.2 feels like a model that emerged under duress rather than inspiration. It performs well, remains reliable, and improves in measurable ways. Still, it doesn’t provide the kind of clear progress that many people expected from the new version number. OpenAI continues to lead the field of artificial intelligence, but competition is fast approaching. As competitors introduce more significant improvements, small updates may no longer be enough to stand out. For now, GPT-5.2 appears to be a replacement for OpenAI rather than a breakthrough.

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Should AI companies slow down releases until improvements become more meaningful? Let us know by writing to us. cyberguy.com.

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