As People Mock GPT-5, Sam Altman Reveals OpenAI’s Plan to Spend Trillions on AI Infrastructure

People have mocked the release of GPT-5, OpenAI’s latest large language model, with many users calling it underwhelming, unimpressive, and not a meaningful improvement over previous versions. In response, Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, acknowledged the missteps in the rollout during a casual dinner in San Francisco with journalists and company executives, as reported by The Verge. He admitted the company “totally screwed up some things” in how the update was delivered but highlighted strong signs of growth, including a doubling of API traffic within 48 hours, a surge in daily active users, and high engagement with new features like the model switcher. Despite the criticism, Altman confirmed that OpenAI is preparing for a massive infrastructure push, stating the company is on track to spend “trillions of dollars” on data center construction in the near future. He framed this as a necessary investment to keep up with the demands of advancing AI systems, even as concerns grow about whether the current AI boom is a speculative bubble. Altman acknowledged that investor enthusiasm for AI may be excessive, saying, “Are we in a phase where investors as a whole are overexcited about AI?” His answer was a clear yes. Still, he argued that such overexcitement often stems from a kernel of real truth—just as the dot-com bubble was rooted in the transformative power of the internet. “When bubbles happen, smart people get overexcited about a kernel of truth,” he said, noting that history shows such moments often lead to lasting innovation. Yet, amid the talk of trillions in spending, broader questions remain unanswered. Is the societal value of AI justifying such astronomical investment? Are the benefits of AI—such as faster information access and automation—worth the costs, including massive energy consumption, potential cognitive impacts on users, and widespread academic dishonesty enabled by generative tools? Could those same resources be better used to address urgent global challenges like poverty, education, or climate change? While Altman’s vision for AI’s future is ambitious, the conversation around its real-world impact, ethics, and long-term sustainability remains largely absent from high-level industry discussions. As OpenAI prepares to build out its infrastructure on an unprecedented scale, one pressing question lingers: Has anyone truly weighed the cost-benefit of this technological leap, or are we simply charging forward on faith? Gizmodo reached out to OpenAI for comment and will update this story when a response is received.