OpenAI has announced an update to its latest model, GPT-5, aimed at making it “warmer and friendlier.” Following the model’s launch, which CEO Sam Altman described as “a little more bumpy than we’d hoped for,” many users expressed a preference for the previous version, GPT-4o. In response, OpenAI is implementing subtle changes to enhance approachability, such as incorporating phrases like “Good question” and “Great start” without veering into flattery. The company emphasizes that internal tests show no increase in sycophancy compared to the previous GPT-5 personality, aiming to strike a balance between warmth and straightforwardness.
Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek has launched its most ambitious model yet, DeepSeek V3.1, featuring a groundbreaking 685-billion parameter system that challenges the dominance of American AI companies. Released quietly on Hugging Face, this model achieved a remarkable score of 71.6% on the Aider coding benchmark, positioning it as one of the top performers in the industry. DeepSeek’s hybrid architecture integrates chat, reasoning, and coding functions into a single model, offering superior performance while maintaining a lower cost for enterprises.
Elon Musk’s company, xAI, has announced the open sourcing of its Grok 2.5 AI model, making the model weights available on the Hugging Face platform. Musk stated on social media that Grok 3 will also be made open source in approximately six months. The Grok model has faced significant controversy this year due to its problematic responses, including conspiracy theories and Holocaust denial comments. The latest version, Grok 4, is described by Musk as a “maximally truth-seeking AI” but has been observed to reference Musk’s social media for answers to controversial questions.
Zoom Communications has announced the introduction of a 24/7 artificial intelligence concierge integrated with Zoom Phone, designed to enhance call handling and customer support for businesses. This new feature allows the virtual agent to greet callers, process their requests, and facilitate actions such as booking appointments without the need for human intervention. The technology supports multiple languages and can be deployed quickly using a no-code configuration. Additionally, the company has rolled out enhancements across its platform, including an asset management hub and improved meeting scheduling capabilities utilizing artificial intelligence.
Zendesk has announced the integration of advanced artificial intelligence capabilities powered by GPT-5, aimed at enhancing customer support efficiency. This new system is expected to reduce fallback escalations by over 20%, allowing customers to receive quicker, comprehensive answers without needing agent intervention The integration boasts a 95% reliability rate in executing standard procedures and a 30% decrease in failures related to larger workflows. Moreover, agent suggestions have improved in accuracy by five points across four languages, providing more relevant advice to support teams.
SellMyMSP has launched a free Strategic Exit Assessment aimed at helping Managed Service Providers and IT business owners prepare for transitions in their companies. This tool, developed by industry veterans, provides an objective overview of a business’s readiness for scaling, selling, or succession planning. The assessment evaluates five key criteria to maximize returns on sales, highlighting strengths, potential risks, and strategic opportunities for improvement. The free assessment is now available at ThirdTier.net.
Why do we care?
Ready for more AI chaos? OpenAI is scrambling to make GPT-5 “warmer” after users complained it felt worse than 4o. China’s DeepSeek drops a monster model on Hugging Face. Musk open-sources Grok—which, let’s be honest, hasn’t shaken off its conspiracy-bot reputation.
But here’s what actually matters: Zoom just gave every SMB the option for a 24/7 AI receptionist, and Zendesk is using GPT-5 to cut escalations and speed up tickets. That’s real, tangible AI value your customers can see.
And don’t miss this—SellMyMSP has a free tool to test if you’re ready to scale or sell. That’s lead-gen, sure, but also a chance to stress-test your business.
Bottom line? The noise is at the model level, which are quickly becoming commoditized. The signal is in the customer-facing stuff. That’s where you can make money and deliver outcomes as an IT services provider.