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OpenAI to introduce mature mode in ChatGPT

PLUS: Elon Musk’s xAI joins the race to build world models

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Howdy, it’s Barsee.

Happy Wednesday, AI family, and welcome to another AI Valley edition. This issue takes 5 minutes to read.

Today’s climb through the Valley reveals:

  • OpenAI to introduce mature mode in ChatGPT

  • Elon Musk’s xAI joins the race to build world models

  • Walmart is adding ChatGPT to online shopping

  • Plus trending AI tools, posts, and resources

Let’s dive into the Valley of AI…

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THROUGH THE VALLEY

Post from Sam Altman

Sam Altman has confirmed two major updates for ChatGPT: customizable personality controls and an upcoming “Mature Mode” that will enable mature or erotic conversations exclusively for verified adults (closely mirroring features recently unveiled by xAI’s Grok).

Altman explained that ChatGPT’s initial restrictions were intended to protect vulnerable users but ended up limiting how natural or enjoyable the assistant could feel. With new age verification and stronger safeguards, OpenAI plans to ease those limits. A refreshed version of ChatGPT, designed to behave “more like what people liked about GPT-4o,” will launch first, followed by Mature Mode in December.

The feature will activate only upon user request, giving adults “a great deal of freedom” in how they interact with ChatGPT. OpenAI has also confirmed that developers will soon be able to create mature apps within ChatGPT using built-in age gates and content filters.

Why does it matter?

The AI companion market is booming, and OpenAI clearly doesn’t want Grok or other rivals to dominate it. The introduction of mature content could attract new segments (especially adults seeking more expressive or authentic AI companions), potentially increasing engagement and subscription rates. However, experts warn that the emotional and psychological impacts of AI intimacy are largely untested, and with 800 million users, the margin for error is razor-thin.

Image Credit: WorldLabs

Elon Musk’s AI startup, xAI, is moving into the development of world models: next-generation AI systems that could surpass text-based large language models like ChatGPT and xAI’s own Grok. These models allow AI to understand and simulate physical environments using causal reasoning and real-time physics, enabling machines to grasp how objects interact in 3D space rather than merely predicting pixels or text.

World models are seen as far more powerful and versatile than today’s chatbots, as they encode a continuous internal model of the real world, enabling stronger prediction, reasoning, and adaptability. Current LLMs, trained on massive text datasets, rely on loosely connected heuristics rather than consistent world models, allowing fluent conversation but limiting their ability to plan, adapt, or reason about real-world changes.

xAI's goal, as stated by Elon Musk, is to launch a “great AI-generated game” by the end of 2026, showing strong ambitions to integrate sophisticated AI-driven physics and simulation into gameplay.

Why does it matter?

This move positions xAI alongside major competitors like Meta and Google, both heavily investing in world-model research to push AI beyond text and image recognition into embodied, spatial understanding. Nvidia estimates the market potential for world models (spanning robotics, gaming, and autonomous systems) could be as significant as the global economy itself.

Walmart has entered a strategic partnership with OpenAI to embed shopping directly inside ChatGPT, allowing users to browse, plan, and complete purchases through a conversational interface.

This integration leverages ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature, enabling customers to receive personalized recommendations (for example, “best mattress under $1,000” or “gifts for book lovers”) and make purchases without leaving the chat.

Why does it matter?

This partnership marks a new stage in AI-assisted retail. Amazon is exploring similar ground with its Buy for Me feature, which allows AI agents to shop across third-party websites on behalf of customers. In essence, the Walmart–OpenAI alliance signals a new era of e-commerce, where users express their needs naturally, and AI handles discovery, decision-making, and instant checkout from start to finish.

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THINK PIECES / BRAIN BOOST

THE VALLEY GEMS

What’s trending on social today:

THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY

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