ChatGPT in 2025: Still the AI to Beat?

It's been two years since I first used ChatGPT, and even with dozens of AI tools on the market, OpenAI's flagship still leads the pack when it comes to general-purpose usefulness.

With GPT-4-turbo now powering the default ChatGPT experience, what really stands out is its balance: fast, accurate, and deeply conversational. Unlike smaller models, it feels like it "gets" what you're asking — whether you want to write a Python script, draft a business email, or explore niche historical trivia.

The custom GPTs feature is a game-changer. I created one called "Startup Pitch Buddy" and another for SQL performance tuning — both tailored to my voice and workflow. It's like building your own assistant without touching code.

The paid tier (ChatGPT Plus) unlocks GPT-4, file uploads, image understanding, and browsing — and honestly, it's worth every penny if you use AI more than casually.

Is it perfect? No. You'll still occasionally get hallucinations, and sometimes it over-hedges simple answers. But for 90% of tasks, it's shockingly capable.

Verdict:✅ Still the most versatile AI tool available — and with custom GPTs, it's also the most personal.