ChatGPT Adult Mode Delayed Again as OpenAI's 'Code Red' Reportedly Ends

OpenAI's “code red” has reportedly reached its end, nearly four months after the company CEO declared it. In December 2025, reports claimed that Sam Altman declared a code red, keeping every non-ChatGPT project on hold. Ever since then, the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence (AI) giant has released three new AI models and multiple new features for the popular chatbot. At the same time, the company has reportedly delayed its “Adult Mode” feature for ChatGPT once again due to other higher-priority projects.

OpenAI's Code Red Reportedly Over

In a Substack post, Alex Heath claimed that OpenAI has now ended the company-wide code red that was in effect since December 2025. Citing unnamed sources, the former The Verge reporter said that the curfew was lifted after the company released the GPT-5.4 AI model earlier this week.

This comes after Fidji Simo, the CEO of Applications at OpenAI, said in a podcast last month that code red will be over after the release of a new model. The executive had also highlighted that the code red only impacted the ChatGPT and product research teams, and not those who were working on long-term research projects.

With the code red coming to an end, the company's sole focus on ChatGPT's growth can now be shifted to a wider range of products and services, as well as new initiatives. It is expected that the Sora app could see new features in the coming days, as a result of this.

While it is unclear if there is a connection between the two, OpenAI is reportedly delaying ChatGPT's Adult Mode for a second time. An OpenAI spokesperson reportedly told Heath that the feature was being put on pause as the company focuses on other higher-priority projects across intelligence, personality improvements, personalisation, and making the ChatGPT experience more proactive.

“We still believe in the principle of treating adults like adults, but getting the experience right will take more time,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying. Notably, the feature was first announced in October 2025 and was delayed to December 2025. Then, it was again delayed to the first quarter of the ongoing year. It is unclear when the company might release the feature.