OpenAI has once again delayed the launch of ChatGPT’s “adult mode” feature, which was originally planned to provide age-verified adult users with access to pornographic literature and other adult content.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman publicly stated in October 2025 that the company would launch an age rating mechanism more comprehensively in December of that year and open more content to verified adult users, including erotic works, under the principle of "treating adults as adults." However, this plan was hit by an "emergency brake" internally: Altman reportedly issued a "code red" internal memo to employees at the time, requiring the team to prioritize resources on the core experience of ChatGPT. Therefore, the launch of the adult mode was delayed from December 2025 to the first quarter of this year.
Now, this feature has been delayed again. An OpenAI spokesperson recently told Axios in an interview that the company is "postponing the launch of the adult mode" in order to prioritize work that is "currently more important to more users," such as continuing to improve the model's intelligence level, personality performance, and making chatbots more "active." The spokesperson also emphasized that the company "still believes that adults should be treated as adults in principle, but it will take more time to polish the overall experience."
It is unclear how long this extension will last, and OpenAI has not given a new timetable. This news was first disclosed by the technology media Sources and was later confirmed.