OpenAI fast-tracks GPT-5.2 launch after internal ‘code red’ to counter Google’s Gemini 3

OpenAI on Thursday introduced GPT-5.2, its newest artificial intelligence model, after what insiders described as an urgent internal push earlier in December to speed up development in response to Google’s Gemini 3. The rapid rollout follows a temporary pause on non-core projects as CEO Sam Altman redirected teams to focus on strengthening OpenAI’s model lineup.

The company said GPT-5.2 delivers sharper general intelligence, stronger coding capabilities and significantly improved long-context reasoning. It added that the model is designed to offer higher economic value for users, particularly through better handling of spreadsheets, presentations and multi-step project workflows. The upgrade positions OpenAI to defend its lead in an increasingly competitive AI landscape.

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Google launched Gemini 3 in November, emphasising its performance gains across several major industry benchmarks. But Altman, speaking in an interview on Thursday, said the impact of Google’s newest model on OpenAI’s internal performance metrics had been “less than feared.” Google did not respond to requests for comment on the launch.

The OpenAI announcement coincided with a major investment from Disney, which confirmed it is deploying $1 billion into the company and will allow OpenAI to use characters from its Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel franchises within the Sora video-generation platform. The move underscores how entertainment giants are positioning themselves for AI-driven content production.

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OpenAI also clarified that it will continue supporting GPT-5.1, GPT-5 and GPT-4.1 in its API ecosystem. The GPT-5.2 family, comprising Instant, Thinking and Pro versions, begins rolling out in ChatGPT from Thursday, starting with paid plans.