‘GPUs are melting’: ChatGPT’s Image Generation Feature Hits Limits Due to Viral Ghibli Trend
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared on Thursday the strain the viral Ghibli-style image trend has placed on the company’s resources. In a post on X, he mentioned that OpenAI’s “GPUs are melting” and that they would be implementing temporary speed limits on the image generation feature. Altman wrote, “It’s awesome seeing how much people enjoy images in ChatGPT, but our GPUs are melting. We’re going to temporarily add some rate limits while we work on improving efficiency. Hopefully, it won’t be too long! The free tier of ChatGPT will soon get 3 generations per day.”
He also added, “We’re rejecting some generations that should go through, but we’re working to fix it as quickly as possible.”
What is the Ghibli image trend all about?
OpenAI’s recent addition of native image generation to ChatGPT has enabled users to create more detailed and nuanced images, as well as edit existing ones. This new feature has sparked a viral trend on social media, with users transforming their photos into the distinctive style of Studio Ghibli animation. The trend has gained significant momentum, with many sharing their Ghibli-inspired images online. Even Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, has joined in, updating his profile picture on X to a Ghibli-style portrait.
What is Studio Ghibli?
Studio Ghibli is a renowned Japanese animation studio founded in 1985 by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki. Known for its commitment to hand-drawn animation and captivating storytelling, Ghibli has produced some of the most beloved animated films of all time.
Their films, including My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Kiki’s Delivery Service, and Princess Mononoke, are celebrated for their enchanting landscapes, delicate color palettes, and deeply moving narratives. The studio’s dedication to hand-drawn animation has established Ghibli as a benchmark in traditional animation.
Who is eligible to use OpenAI’s new image generation tool?
On Wednesday, OpenAI announced the rollout of ChatGPT’s new native image generation feature, which is now available to Plus, Pro, Team, and Free users.
Earlier, Sam Altman confirmed that the feature’s availability for free users had been “delayed for a while.” In addition, Altman revealed an update to GPT-4o on Thursday. He shared that the updated version of GPT-4o, OpenAI’s top free pre-trained model, is especially proficient in coding, following instructions, and offering more flexibility. Altman mentioned in a post on X, “The new version of GPT-4o is particularly good at coding, instruction following, and freedom.”
