OpenAI yesterday released Images 2.6, an update to its image generation model. According to the company, it brings faster generation, GIF creation, more precise editing and new API controls, across ChatGPT, Codex and the API.
GIF creation is the headline: you can ask ChatGPT for a short looping animation or turn an existing image into a GIF. Reports say the update also speeds image generation by about 50%. Some capabilities are marked 'coming soon' on some platforms, so not every user will see them right away.
The update arrives about six months after Images 2.0, launched in April, which brought reasoning into image generation: the model plans an image before drawing it, improving text in images, diagrams and precise object placement.
Competition is intense. Google's Gemini image models and Midjourney are adding video and animation too. The GIF, an old format that still dominates chats and social feeds, is a simple way for OpenAI to make the tool more useful day to day.
