Altman says younger users treat ChatGPT like an operating system
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said older users tend to treat ChatGPT like a Google replacement, while people in their 20s and 30s use it more like a life advisor. He also said college students are using it like an operating system, with saved prompts, file connections, and constant context from past chats.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says people are using ChatGPT in very different ways depending on their age, with college students appearing to push the tool furthest. Speaking at Sequoia Capital’s AI Ascent event last May, Altman said older users often treat ChatGPT like a Google replacement, while people in their 20s and 30s use it as a life advisor.
“Gross oversimplification, but like older people use ChatGPT as a Google replacement. Maybe people in their 20s and 30s use it as like a life advisor, and then, like people in college use it as an operating system,” Altman said.
⚡ New to this?
This story is about how different age groups are using ChatGPT for different tasks. A large language model is an AI system that generates text based on patterns in data, and ChatGPT’s memory feature lets it keep some context from past chats, which can make it feel more personal.
The bigger point is that ChatGPT is moving beyond search-style questions into advice, planning, and decision support. That matters because the more people rely on it for personal or sensitive decisions, the more questions come up about accuracy, safety, and how much trust to place in the answers.
🦞 OpenClaw angle
If you are building self-hosted agents, assume younger users will expect persistent context, saved prompts, and file-aware workflows by default. Design your agent memory and retrieval layer so users can revisit prior decisions without retyping the whole problem.
For higher-risk use cases like health, finance, or HR advice, add a mandatory verification step and show sources before the agent gives a recommendation. Also separate “chat for brainstorming” from “chat for decisions” so your automation does not blur casual suggestions with trusted guidance.
Altman’s comments point to a shift in how conversational AI is being used. He said younger users are not just asking one-off questions. They are building more complex setups, connecting ChatGPT to files, and saving prompts that they reuse.
“I mean, that stuff, I think, is all cool and impressive,” Altman said. He added that some younger users are also using ChatGPT for something more personal: “they don’t really make life decisions without asking ChatGPT what they should do.”
OpenAI has previously pointed to similar usage patterns. In 2025, the company published a report saying college-aged young adults in the U.S. were adopting ChatGPT more than any other user group, and that more than one-third of 18-to-24 year olds use the product.
Altman said ChatGPT’s memory feature helps explain that behavior. Because the product can remember prior conversations, he said, it can keep “the full context on every person in their life and what they’ve talked about.” That makes it easier to use the tool for ongoing personal questions rather than isolated tasks.
The kinds of questions people bring to ChatGPT now go well beyond search. According to reports cited in the source article, users ask it about relationships, business, and medical issues. Some people even use it as a replacement for talk therapy.
That broader use has also drawn scrutiny. Experts in the fields being consulted are divided on whether ChatGPT is safe or reliable for major life decisions. A November 2023 study cited in the article said users should be cautious with ChatGPT for safety-related information and should verify expert advice. The study also called for safeguards so users understand the model’s limits.
Another study described large language models, or AI systems trained to generate human-like text from patterns in data, as “inherently sociopathic,” according to the article. At the same time, other studies and experiments have found that ChatGPT can be harmless, and sometimes helpful, for everyday advice.
Altman compared the generational gap in ChatGPT use to the early smartphone era. “The difference is unbelievable” between how a 20-year-old and an older user might interact with the product, he said.
“It reminds me of, like, when the smartphone came out, and, like, every kid was able to use it super well,” Altman said. “And older people, just like, took, like, three years to figure out how to do basic stuff.” OpenAI did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment on whether using ChatGPT for advice is safe or reliable, according to the source article.
