Forget AGI—Sam Altman Celebrates ChatGPT Finally Following Em Dash Formatting Rules

Why It Matters

The ability to enforce simple formatting rules reveals persistent limitations in LLM controllability, affecting user trust and the credibility of AI‑generated content. It also tempers expectations that current models are nearing AGI, reminding investors and regulators to scrutinize claims of advanced AI capabilities.

Summary

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced on X that the latest GPT‑5.1 model now respects a custom instruction to omit em dashes, a long‑standing formatting quirk that many users have used to spot AI‑generated text. The post sparked mixed reactions, with some praising the "small win" while others warned it underscores how little control OpenAI still has over basic stylistic choices. Altman framed the improvement as a step toward more reliable instruction‑following, but critics argue it highlights the gap between today’s statistical language models and true artificial general intelligence. The episode revives debate over the readiness of LLMs for broader enterprise deployment and the hype surrounding AGI timelines.