ChatGPT suffers a global outage: what's happening and what to do

Last update: 04/09/2025

  • ChatGPT has been experiencing a global outage since early this morning, with spikes in Downdetector notifications.
  • The website and app are showing errors, and OpenAI is investigating the incident without giving a timeframe.
  • Issues have also been reported in OpenAI services such as Sora and DALL·E.
  • Tips and alternatives for continuing to work while service is restored.
chatgpt isn't working

This morning Wednesday, September 3 has begun with a first-class technological stumble: ChatGPT is not working normally and thousands of users around the world are reporting problems using the chatbot in both the web version and the app.

What many have noticed is that the AI does not return a response or displays error messages when trying to start a conversation. On social media, warnings are multiplying, and searches for ChatGPT and OpenAI have skyrocketed, while the company has yet to issue a detailed statement.

What's happening right now

chatgpt crash history

According to the reports collected, the failures have begun around 08:30 (peninsular time)The most common symptom is a lack of response from the assistant and the appearance of internal errors when submitting queries, both on desktop and mobile.

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The monitoring website Downdetector shows a sharp spike in ChatGPT-related incidents, which confirms that these are not isolated cases. The incident is listed on OpenAI's status page as under investigation, without an official resolution estimate.

The reports are not limited to Spain: there are global impact with testimonials from multiple countries. Some users also point to intermittent problems in other OpenAI services such as Sora and DALL·E, suggesting a broader impact within the ecosystem.

On X (formerly Twitter) there are many messages asking if the service is down and jokes about it; there are also complaints about ChatGPT Plus subscribers about errors in generating images or accounting for credits, although there is no official confirmation of a specific pattern at this time.

Scope and impact

impact of the fall of ChatGPT

The outage is affecting users and companies who have incorporated ChatGPT into their workflows. From automated customer service to writing, data analysis, and programming, the shutdown is causing delays and rescheduling of tasks.

Marketing professionals, journalists, researchers and students point out that cannot interact normally with the chatbot, with sessions that do not load or are abruptly interrupted.

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Those who integrate the API into their own products also report service degradation, with incomplete responses or unusually long wait times, affecting platform-dependent tools.

Experts consulted recall that the usual causes in such scenarios include point overloads, failed deployments, or incidents in the underlying infrastructure. Without official communication, it's not possible to pinpoint the source of the current failure.

Background and other recent falls

chatgpt incident

This is not the first time that an interruption of this type has occurred. In June 2025, users in Spain were unable to access the service for several hours, in an incident that was resolved without any technical details being disclosed.

Incidents were also reported on January 23 and the December 26th in recent years, including a global outage that left millions of people without access to both the web and the app for several hours.

Looking back further, in May In 2023 there was a global shutdown attributed to scalability issues, and in February 2024 A model update caused erroneous responses and a partial degradation of service, especially among paying users.

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The pattern drawn by these episodes underlines two realities: the huge demand that supports the platform and the need for more transparent communication when large-scale incidents occur.

What can you do in the meantime?

chatgpt crash

If you depend on ChatGPT for your work or study, consider temporary alternatives while you get back to normal: Gemini (Google), Claude (Anthropic) or Llama-based models (Meta) can cover urgent tasks.

For specific uses, tools such as GitHub Copilot (programming) or assisted writing services such as Jasper and Copy.ai They can serve as support while the incident lasts.

In the medium term, it is advisable to design contingency plans: Have backup services, export prompts and key results, and document workflows for seamless tool switching when things go wrong.

Today's situation highlights the extent to which the dependence on AI It affects the daily lives of users and businesses; while waiting for an official explanation and restoration deadline from OpenAI, alternatives and advance planning make the difference in maintaining activity.

ChatGPT is not working
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ChatGPT down: causes of the crash, common errors, and the overall impact on users