ChatGPT creator OpenAI launches o3-mini: its new 'reasoning' AI model to compete with DeepSeek

OpenAI has just released its new o3-mini, its newest, most cost-efficient model in its reasoning series, to both ChatGPT and API today... just as DeepSeek has come in changing the AI landscape.

In a new post on its website, the ChatGPT creator says that its new o3-mini is its most powerful, and fastest model that "advances the boundaries of what small models can achieve, delivering exceptional STEM capabilities -- with particular strenth in science, math, and coding -- all while maintaining the low cost and reduced latency of OpenAI o1-mini".

OpenAI explains on its website: "OpenAI o3-mini is our first small reasoning model that supports highly requested developer features including function calling⁠(opens in a new window), Structured Outputs⁠(opens in a new window), and developer messages⁠(opens in a new window), making it production-ready out of the gate. Like OpenAI o1-mini and OpenAI o1-preview, o3-mini will support streaming⁠(opens in a new window). Also, developers can choose between three reasoning effort⁠(opens in a new window) options-low, medium, and high-to optimize for their specific use cases".

"This flexibility allows o3-mini to "think harder" when tackling complex challenges or prioritize speed when latency is a concern. o3-mini does not support vision capabilities, so developers should continue using OpenAI o1 for visual reasoning tasks. o3-mini is rolling out in the Chat Completions API, Assistants API, and Batch API starting today to select developers in API usage tiers 3-5⁠(opens in a new window)".

After its new o3-mini model, OpenAI promises what's next: "The release of OpenAI o3-mini marks another step in OpenAI's mission to push the boundaries of cost-effective intelligence. By optimizing reasoning for STEM domains while keeping costs low, we're making high-quality AI even more accessible. This model continues our track record of driving down the cost of intelligence-reducing per-token pricing by 95% since launching GPT-4-while maintaining top-tier reasoning capabilities. As AI adoption expands, we remain committed to leading at the frontier, building models that balance intelligence, efficiency, and safety at scale".