ZURICH/SAN FRANCISCO – The big AI sex dream has burst! OpenAI is postponing the announced adult mode for ChatGPT without a new schedule. What CEO Sam Altman grandly promised in the fall of 2025 is now on hold - and there are solid economic reasons for that.
The promise: "Treat adults like adults"
It sounded like a revolution: In fall 2025, Sam Altman appeared in front of the cameras and announced that ChatGPT would have an age restriction this year. Verified users over 18 should finally be allowed to create erotic content with the chatbot.
“Treat adult users like adults” – Sam Altman, CEO OpenAI (October 2025)
The idea: When the conversation becomes explicit, the bot should no longer prudishly refuse. No more moralistic demolitions. Verified adults are allowed to become sexual.
The postponement saga
October 2025: Big announcement at product presentation December 2025: First postponement to Q1 2026 (reason: “Improve age verification”) 9. March 2026: Definitive postponement without new date
What happened?
The brutal truth: Sex costs money – and partners
OpenAI now officially names other “priorities”: They want to focus on intelligence, character and personalization. But the industry platform Sources.news and the magazine Futurezone reveal the real reasons:
Obstacle #1: Apple & Google
Apple and Google's app stores are extremely restrictive when it comes to explicit content. A ChatGPT app with an erotic function? Risks being kicked out of the stores – and with it access to millions of users.
Obstacle #2: Visa, Mastercard & Co.
Credit card companies are notoriously prudish. Anyone who attracts attention with erotic content risks partnering with payment service providers. No payments = no business.
Obstacle #3: Advertising partners
There are advertising bans for explicit content on all major social media platforms. But OpenAI currently wants to develop advertising as a source of income - an experiment with ads in the free version is already running in the USA.
The Conflict: Erotic features vs. advertising revenue. OpenAI has made a decision.
The technical minefield
In addition: AI eroticism is damn difficult to moderate. Generative models can generate content dynamically - conversations easily drift in unwanted directions.
Child protection, illegal content, deepfake abuse: the risks are huge. A scandal would not only cost OpenAI customers, but would destroy its entire image.
OpenAI needs cash – urgently
The context makes the decision more understandable: OpenAI needs to raise almost a trillion and a half dollars by 2033 - debt for computing power. The company needs safe sources of income, not risky erotic experiments.
The alternative: Advertising in the free version and ChatGPT Go. Boring but profitable.
800 million users wait in vain
ChatGPT has around 800 million users per week - and is considered the most popular chatbot in the world. Since its launch three years ago, the platform has sparked the current AI hype.
But the business model remains fragile. Many users want to use the AI for free. Premium subscriptions (ChatGPT Plus) bring money, but not enough for the astronomical costs.
Erotic features should become an additional source of income - a niche that attracts users willing to pay. Now this plan has failed.
Will the sex bot ever come?
OpenAI asserts: They continue to believe in the principle of treating adults as adults. "But it will take some time to create the right experience."
Translation: Maybe someday. Or never.
The competition will be happy. While OpenAI hesitates, smaller AI startups have long been experimenting with erotic chatbots - without Apple, Visa and advertising partners breathing down their necks.
The end of a dream
What remains is a PR disaster:
- October 2025: Big announcement
- December 2025: First postponement
- March 2026: Surrender
Sam Altman's Sex AI remains a piece of cake. ChatGPT remains prudish. And the 800 million users who were hoping for adult content are left empty-handed.
March 2026
