Technologies

ChatGPT Is Still Down. Try These Alternatives While OpenAI Works on a Fix

Thousands of users reported an outage this morning. Here are some alternatives you can use for now.

Have you noticed that ChatGPT is a little less chatty today? OpenAI is experiencing a widespread outage Tuesday that’s affecting its ChatGPT AI chatbot service. The number of reported outages increased throughout the morning.

An OpenAI representative responded to CNET via email, directing us to its status page, which originally stated that OpenAI was experiencing «elevated errors and latency» and that it had identified the root cause and is working to mitigate the underlying issue.

Its Sora tool for AI-generated videos was also down, although an update posted at 8:28 a.m. ET stated, «All impacted services have now fully recovered.»

«Full recovery across all listed services may take another few hours,» an update posted at 10:54 a.m ET (7:54 a.m. PT) said, noting that OpenAI APIs, which allow developers to tap into the company’s AI models, are beginning to recover.

We are observing elevated error rates and latency across ChatGPT and the API.
Our engineers have identified the root cause and are working as fast as possible to fix the issue.
For updates see our status page: https://t.co/oUGSSyltRU

— OpenAI (@OpenAI) June 10, 2025

The troubles have now been ongoing for 12 hours, OpenAI noted, meaning they likely started around midnight PT.

The Downdetector service also shows outage reports starting around that time and spiking several hours later. (Disclosure: Downdetector is owned by Ziff Davis, which is also the parent company of CNET.)

Launched in 2022, ChatGPT has become the most popular AI application ever released, with 400 million weekly users. A barrage of generative AI competitors have followed, including Meta AI, Google’s Gemini and Microsoft’s Copilot, but ChatGPT remains the leader largely because it’s easy to use. During its Worldwide Developers Conference 2025 keynote on Monday, Apple even touted an expansion of its ChatGPT integration.

The AI chatbot uses learning algorithms and large-language models to process massive amounts of data from books and the internet, which it uses to deliver human-like responses to prompts from users. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

What can you do while OpenAI is down?

Although OpenAI’s ChatGPT may be among the most popular options, there are plenty of alternatives to use while it’s down — and many of them are free.

Chatbots

Claude is our current favorite chatbot we’ve tested, and Claude even knew all the details about ChatGPT’s outage, according to my colleague Jon Reed, a CNET senior editor who covers AI.

Image generators

If you rely on ChatGPT’s Dall-E 3 as your image generator, we’d recommend trying Leonardo.Ai for really creative work and Canva for free, beginner-friendly work.

Video generators

If you’re looking for an alternative to the Sora tool for AI-generated videos, we just checked out Microsoft’s Bing Video Creator. It’s super easy to use and available on mobile now.

Technologies

The Fourth Episode of the VERUM AI Mini-Series Is Out

Verum Messenger has released the fourth episode of its AI mini-series SHADOWS, created using Verum AI. The new episode, titled “No Borders,” continues the story of a team trying to stay out of the OMEGA corporation’s sight.

Following the events of the previous episodes, the team moves between cities and countries while OMEGA continues its search. The new episode puts particular emphasis on Verum Messenger’s capabilities that allow users to conceal their location.

“No Borders” is another chapter in a story about privacy, freedom of communication, and technologies that erase borders between people.

The VERUM AI mini-series consists of seven episodes, released gradually across Verum Messenger’s social media channels.

Episode 4 is now available. Stay tuned for the next chapter.

Watch on YouTube
Watch on Instagram

Technologies

Verum Messenger Introduces Built-In Verum Chess

Verum Messenger has released a new update for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, adding another feature to its growing ecosystem — Verum Chess. Users can now play chess directly inside the messenger without switching between different applications.

The new feature allows users to start a game in just a few taps while reinforcing Verum’s vision of a unified digital environment where communication and everyday services come together in a single platform.

Verum Messenger continues to evolve into a multifunctional ecosystem that combines secure chats and calls, AI tools, a built-in VPN, anonymous email, eSIM, financial services, cryptocurrency features, and offline communication. With the introduction of Verum Chess, the platform now also offers a new way for users to interact and spend time together without leaving the app.

The update is now available for iPhone, iPad, and Mac on the App Store.

Technologies

Episode 3 of the VERUM AI Mini-Series Is Now Available

Verum Messenger has released the third episode of its AI mini-series, SHADOWS, created using Verum AI.

The new episode, titled «Ghost Money,» continues the story of the conflict between a team of heroes and the Omega corporation, which seeks to take control of digital communications. This time, the focus shifts to anonymous payments and financial freedom, revealing how privacy can extend beyond messaging.

Like the previous episodes, the new release not only advances the storyline but also showcases the capabilities of the Verum ecosystem, highlighting technologies designed for secure communication and digital privacy.

The mini-series consists of seven episodes, released gradually across Verum Messenger’s social media channels.

Episode 3 is now available. Stay tuned for the next chapter.

Watch on Instagram
Watch on YouTube