OpenAI Release Season (Day 12): o3 Models
On December 20, 2024, OpenAI unveiled its latest reasoning AI models, the o3 and o3-mini, marking a significant milestone in the field of artificial intelligence. These models were announced during the final day of OpenAI's "12 Days of OpenAI" event, a series of livestreams showcasing the company’s latest advancements. The o3 model family represents a leap forward in AI reasoning capabilities, building on the foundation laid by the o1 models released earlier in 2024. With enhanced performance on complex tasks, groundbreaking benchmark results, and a focus on safety, the o3 models are poised to redefine the boundaries of AI applications.
Background and Naming
The o3 models are successors to OpenAI's o1 models, which were launched in September 2024. The decision to name the new models "o3" instead of "o2" was influenced by potential trademark conflicts with the British telecom provider O2. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman humorously acknowledged the company’s tradition of poor naming choices during the livestream.
The o3 models are available in two versions:
- o3: The full-featured model designed for maximum performance.
- o3-mini: A distilled, cost-effective version optimized for faster response times and lower computational costs.
