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The Definitive Ranking of OpenAI's 12 Days of Shipmas - from Best to Worst

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Zoe Kopidis & Ivan Jackson
December 23, 2024

Welcome to a special 🎄 holiday edition of Overclocked, where we bring you the latest and greatest in the world of AI. With OpenAI’s 12 Days of Shipmas, we saw an array of updates ranging from groundbreaking innovations to underwhelming recaps. In this newsletter, we’ve ranked all the announcements, breaking down what mattered most, what fell flat, and what could shape the future of AI.

🥇 Day 3 - Sora

Sora takes the top spot as the most exciting release of the 12 days. This text-to-video AI isn’t just a new tool—it’s a new frontier for creators. Sora allows creators to turn story ideas or scene descriptions into fully realized videos, opening up a new realm of possibilities for storytelling and content creation. It’s a leap forward for anyone in storytelling, content creation, or visual media. That’s why it sits at number one.

🥈 Day 6 - Advanced Voice with Video

Easily one of our favorite ChatGPT features, we had a hard time deciding whether this or Sora deserved the top spot. This update allows you to chat in real time with near-zero latency. Video and screen sharing are game-changers—it’s basically like FaceTiming the smartest person you know. We’ve been using it a ton since its release, and it continues to impress for its practicality. 

🥉 Day 10 - 1-800-CHATGPT

1-800-CHATGPT is a big step toward making conversational AI more accessible. By enabling real-time voice interactions, it lowers the barrier for those who prefer talking to typing. It’s been surprisingly popular, opening up access to ChatGPT to billions on WhatsApp. It’s a natural fit for bringing AI closer to how we communicate, making it one of the more impactful updates.

🆕 Day 12 - o3 Preview & Call for Safety Researchers

The o3 Preview might not be the flashiest update, but it’s one of the most important. It represents a massive step toward AGI, or Artificial General Intelligence—the ability for AI to perform any intellectual task a human can, with reasoning, adaptability, and self-improvement. This model hints at a future where AI can solve increasingly complex problems across diverse domains. If it had been fully released, it would have easily taken the top spot on this list. For now, only evaluations were shared, but the implications of this model are profound, emphasizing trust and signaling a smarter, more reliable future for AI.

💰️ Day 1 - o1 & ChatGPT Pro

o1 is a really good model, showcasing impressive reasoning capabilities that make it feel like it can "think." This is a significant step forward for OpenAI, as it pushes the boundaries of what conversational AI can achieve in terms of adaptability and problem-solving. That said, this update would have ranked higher on our list if OpenAI had been more reasonable about the release of o1 Pro, which is only accessible through the $200/month ChatGPT Pro plan. We purchased it and tested o1 Pro—it’s good, but it’s hard to justify that price tag. While it’s a valuable addition, the cost limits its accessibility and impact, which keeps it from rising higher in our ranking.

💻️ Day 11 - Work with Apps

Expanding app integrations is a practical improvement that enhances workflows and productivity. It’s especially useful for developers and teams, but it’s more of an incremental update than a transformative one. Still, it’s a feature that will see a lot of use, which keeps it comfortably in the middle of the list.

📓 Day 7 - Projects in ChatGPT

Projects is a much-needed addition for organizing conversations and files. It’s the kind of quality-of-life update that makes ChatGPT easier to use without reinventing the wheel. Simple, effective, and appreciated—but not a game-changer.

ChatGPT Search was already available to Plus users, and this update simply made it accessible to free users as well. It’s great to see broader availability, but it’s not offering anything new. A useful feature, but nothing groundbreaking, which is why it doesn’t demand the spotlight.

📽️ Day 13 - Bonus Day

Bonus Day was OpenAI’s way of closing out the 12 days on a high note. GPUs tend to get less busy during late December as people take a break from work, so OpenAI decided to give all Plus users unlimited Sora access via the relaxed queue over the holidays. While it’s a fun and thoughtful gesture that encourages creativity during the holiday season, it’s more of a seasonal perk than a major release, which is why it lands lower on the list.

🎄 Day 9 - Holiday Treats for Developers

Developers were treated to some excellent updates, like API enhancements and new fine-tuning options. These are vital for building better tools, but their backend focus means they’re less thrilling for the average user. A solid win for the dev community, but not a headline-grabber.

🎨 Day 4 - Canvas

Canvas was already available for most users, so this update was really more of a recap than a major release. Some minor new features include the ability to run Python directly within Canvas and its compatibility with GPTs. While these are useful additions, they don’t fundamentally change the experience, which keeps Canvas from climbing higher on the list.

🔬 Day 2 - Reinforcement Fine-Tuning Research Program

This program opens the door for researchers and enterprises to refine AI using reinforcement learning. It’s an important step for advancing AI capabilities, but unless you’re directly involved in this field, it’s unlikely to make a big splash.

🍎 Day 5 - ChatGPT in Apple Intelligence

ChatGPT’s integration with Apple Intelligence remains underwhelming. This update didn’t introduce anything new; instead, it served as a recap of features that were already available. While Apple users may find it convenient, the lack of fresh functionality made this a forgettable moment in the lineup.

📹️ Have you tried Sora yet? Check out our prompt of th week and see if you can beat it! ⬇️ 

Sora-generated video

a blond woman wearing a wool red hat and a brown winter jacket holding a polar bear by the leash gets out a chalet restaurant in Churchill, Canada that is decorated for the holidays

Think you can make a cooler video? Remix this prompt and send us the link!

Before you break for the holidays, here’s what you need to know this week ⬇️ 

Wishing everyone a joyful holiday season and a creative, productive year ahead!

Here’s to hoping future AI releases continue to build on the innovations we saw during Shipmas, keeping the momentum strong for what’s next in AI.

See you next week for more insights, news, and what we’re loving in the world of AI! 🚀 Until then, keep overclocking your potential!

Zoe and Ivan from Overclocked