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Comment by ACCount37 | Hacker News Reader

My intuition is that ChatGPT has the mindshare of the "normal user" userbase, which is powerful. Ask Apple. You can still squander a lead like this, but not easily.

GPT-5 was in no small part a "cost down update" for OpenAI - they replaced their default 4o with a more optimized, more lightweight option that they can serve at scale without burning a hole in their pockets. At the same time, their "top end" options for the power users willing to pay for good performance remain competitive.

The entire reason why OpenAI is burning money is "their investments to remain competitive". Inference is profitable - R&D is the money pit. OpenAI is putting money into more infra, more research and more training runs.

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I don't follow the comparison to Apple. Apple phones are not like Android phones, Apple computers are not like Windows computers. There's a real difference between Apple products and others. There's definitely an appeal for devices that just work and are polished (or so I've heard). I don't think ChatGPT has done that in its space.

If you want a smartphone but know nothing about smartphones? You get an iPhone and don't think about it.

If you want an AI chatbot but know nothing about AI chatbots? ChatGPT is the go-to. Almost synonymous with AI now. Same exact broad appeal.

There's a wild difference in features and ecosystem when using an iPhone, as well as quite some friction in changing, to the point that it's way more than simple brand recognition. iPhones tend to be more expensive, yet they are bought by a wide range of consumers who value them and the Apple ecosystem, the customer support etc. If brand recognition were the main reason for consumers to choose Apple devices, they'd have all switched to Android once they realized they can just pay half.

This friction to switch is just not there for chatbots offering substantially equivalent features. That's why ChatGPT is still mostly free: most users would leave the moment they impose stricter limits. If you know nothing about smartphones but they cost a significant amount of your income, well you try to know more before you buy anything. There's no reason to do that for chatbots yet given that they're free to use, just try it out and stick to the first one you tried until they make it bad enough for you to want to switch.

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