Why is the GPT-4 Turbo preview now slower than GPT-4?

Below is some context on GPT‑4 Turbo and its preview models that might help explain your experience:

What We Know

• Design Goals:
  The GPT‑4 Turbo models (including the preview versions) are engineered to be faster and more cost-effective than GPT‑4. They are optimized to reduce issues like “laziness” where the model might not fully complete a task.

• Infrastructure and Load:
  Performance may vary depending on factors such as current server load, routing decisions, or ongoing infrastructure upgrades. This means that while one day a model may appear faster, on another day variations in system allocation could affect response times.

What Might Be Happening

• Temporary Variability:
  If you’re seeing slower average response times (for similar amounts of output) compared to what was previously experienced, it’s possible that recent infrastructure adjustments or load balancing changes are affecting performance temporarily.

• Model Updates and Testing:
  Preview models are inherently subject to iterative improvements and tuning. Changes in performance could be part of ongoing tests to further stabilize outputs, improve quality, or address other issues. There is no definitive public schedule for reverting to previous performance levels.

Recommendations

• Stay Updated:
  Keep an eye on OpenAI’s official announcements and status updates for any information related to performance changes or upcoming model updates.

• Provide Feedback:
  If you’re experiencing a noticeable degradation in performance, consider submitting feedback through your API dashboard or support channels. User experiences help guide further improvements.

Final Note

As of now, there hasn’t been a formal announcement specifying that the preview model’s increased generation times were intentional or part of a broader rollout change. Your observations could be due to normal fluctuations in cloud-based model performance.

Hope this helps clarify the situation!