OpenAI Begins Testing Group Chats in ChatGPT
OpenAI has launched the group chat mode of ChatGPT and has put it under testing. In this new free-for-all format, many people can interact with the chatbot and the shared dialogue, the purpose of which is for collaborative purposes like planning, brainstorming, and academic work.
How the Group Chats Work
A new group chat can be initiated by clicking a button in the upper right corner of the service. If participants are added to an already existing conversation, ChatGPT will copy the entire conversation, so the original personal chat will not be affected. A link can then be sent to invite up to 20 participants, although any of the participants can also share this link.
Some Key Features and Functionalities
ChatGPT, in such collaborative sessions, runs on the GPT-5.1 Auto model and offers a variety of capabilities:
- Full support for searching, file uploads, image handling, and voice input.
- Newly acquired "social" skills will let it follow the conversation's topic and intervene whenever apt.
- It may be prompted by mentioning its name.
- It will respond to emoji messages and use participant avatars for any personalized content, like images.
- Manage group settings such as modifying the chat name, participant management, notifications, and applying individual instructions for the model.
Privacy, Safety, and User Controls
OpenAI has made it clear that group chats are entirely separate from users' private conversations. Some fundamental privacy and control measures include:
- Group chats do not utilize or update ChatGPT's personal memory feature.
- A user can join the group on accepting an invitation only.
- Any participant can leave the group chat created by them at any given time.
- In groups containing minors, sensitive content is automatically restricted, while parents have the ability to disable the group chat feature altogether.
Pilot Launch Information
The feature is the first step toward developing collaborative features for ChatGPT, with further expansion and development relying upon user feedback from the initial test. The pilot has been started on web and mobile apps for users of ChatGPT Free, Go, Plus, and Pro in Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and Taiwan.
