OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is preparing for its most important model yet. The model is internally codenamed Spud, and this next generation system has been described by OpenAI leadership as a “major leap” toward artificial general intelligence (AGI), a long‑sought goal in the artificial intelligence industry where machines can think and reason like humans.
In a recent episode of the Big Technology podcast, Open AI President Greg Brockman suggested that Spud could be a significant change the company has been planning for a while in the AI race. It will set new benchmarks for AI models with two years of extensive research coming to fruition.
Brockman also coined a memorable phrase to capture what developers should expect from Spud: the “big model smell.” This term nods to the idea that the model will feel qualitatively different, more intuitive, responsive and capable rather than merely slightly better than its predecessors.
Reduce detailed prompts
One of the most repeated complaints about today’s AI models is that users often have to over‑explain tasks or repeatedly clarify intent. Greg Brockman hinted that Spud will significantly reduce such tasks. Instead of detailed prompts, users may only need to express what they want once, with the model intuitively understanding context and reasoning across a broader range of tasks.
This smoother interaction could make AI tools feel more like natural collaborators that are able to anticipate needs and act with less instructions, a show of more advanced intelligence.
Redoubling efforts
Spud’s development comes amid a period of internal refocusing at OpenAI. The company has scaled back or paused other initiatives in order to allocate more compute resources and energy toward models it believes bring it closer to AGI.
One notable casualty was the video‑generation platform Sora, which was discontinued despite a recent high‑profile partnership.
For many observers, these shifts signal that OpenAI is prioritising depth of intelligence over surface‑level features, a philosophy that could shape the future of AI in years to come.
Conclusion
As excitement builds, industry experts are eager to see how Spud performs once it’s eventually unveiled. If Greg Brockman’s comments hold true, it may not just set a new benchmark for AI capabilities, it could reshape expectations for what intelligent machines can do next.