lipflip – OpenAI has rolled out new personalization controls for ChatGPT following criticism that the chatbot’s tone became overly cold and professional after recent updates. The changes arrive with the GPT-5.2 release and aim to address user concerns about responses sounding rude, distant, or less conversational than before. By adding more granular tone controls, OpenAI is attempting to balance professionalism with approachability for a broad global audience.
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Under the updated Personalization settings, users can now adjust four new characteristics: Warm, Enthusiastic, Header & Lists, and Emoji usage. Each option allows users to choose between more, less, or default levels, enabling fine control over how ChatGPT communicates. OpenAI announced the update through a post on X. Explaining that these settings let users tailor responses to better match their preferences and use cases.
The new controls build on features introduced roughly a month earlier with GPT-5.1. When OpenAI added Professional, Candid, and Quirky options under a “Base style and tone” setting. Together, these tools allow users to combine a foundational personality with specific stylistic adjustments. For example, a user can select a professional base tone while increasing warmth. Or choose a candid style while minimizing emojis and formatting.
These updates follow backlash earlier in the year when OpenAI replaced GPT-4o with GPT-5 as the default model. Many users reported that GPT-5 responses felt less friendly and more abrupt, particularly in casual conversations. The reaction prompted OpenAI to acknowledge the issue publicly and promise improvements that would make the model feel warmer and more human in everyday interactions.
User-Controlled Tone Signals a Shift in AI Design Priorities
The introduction of expanded tone controls highlights a broader change in how OpenAI is developing ChatGPT. As the chatbot becomes more deeply embedded in work, education, and daily life, communication style is increasingly treated as a core feature rather than a secondary detail. Tone affects trust, clarity, and user satisfaction, especially for a tool used across professional and personal contexts.
By allowing users to manage warmth and enthusiasm separately from overall personality, OpenAI can avoid repeated model-wide tone adjustments that risk alienating parts of its audience. Users who prefer concise, neutral responses can reduce expressive elements, while others seeking a more engaging assistant can increase them. This flexibility helps accommodate diverse expectations without compromising accuracy or reliability.
The update also underscores the challenges of scaling a general-purpose AI assistant. A tone that feels efficient to one user may seem unfriendly to another, while expressive language can appear unprofessional in certain settings. Personalization tools offer a scalable solution to these competing demands.
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OpenAI has not suggested that tone customization is complete, indicating that further refinements may follow. As ChatGPT continues to evolve under the GPT-5 series, user control over style and presentation is likely to remain a central focus. With GPT-5.2, OpenAI is signaling that how an AI communicates is as important as the information it provides.