You can now hop on ChatGPT without needing an account

What you need to know

• Users can now use ChatGPT without signing up for an account, aligning with OpenAI's goal of broad accessibility for AI tools.
• Not needing an account allows OpenAI to gather more training data, potentially improving AI models.
• While ChatGPT is available without an account, signing up is required for access to paid services and features like DALL-E.

If you've been hesitant about sharing personal information to chat with ChatGPT, OpenAI is now removing that hurdle for you.

OpenAI's free AI platform, ChatGPT, won't require you to sign up anymore, the company said in a blog post. The goal is to make AI tools like ChatGPT accessible to everyone, so now you can jump right in without the hassle of creating an account.

If you're cool with it, not needing an account means OpenAI gets more training data. It might also encourage more people to sign up and subscribe for even better access to GPT-4 instead of sticking with the older GPT-3.5 model that free users usually get.

"We may use what you provide to ChatGPT to improve our models for everyone," OpenAI said.

But if you're wary about the whole model training thing, you can still opt out, even without an account. Just click on the little question mark on the right side of the text box, then hit Settings, and flip the switch for "Improve the model for everyone" to off.

Since ChatGPT debuted back in late 2022, people who wanted to dive in had to make an OpenAI account. Then, OpenAI started offering paid subscriptions to unlock more powerful services like DALL-E 3.

While OpenAI is letting anyone use its AI chatbot without needing an account, you'll still need to sign up if you're eyeing paid services like DALL-E. Opting for the GPT-4 subscription redirects you to the service's signup page.

To save and review chat history, share chats, or have voice conversations, you'll also need to have an account.

OpenAI said it's beefed up protections for users without accounts, like restricting prompts and image generations in certain categories. However, the company hasn't explained what these categories are.

If you're intrigued by ChatGPT, this could be a neat way to test it out without handing over too much of your information.