ChatGPT Is Down, Here’s What OpenAI Says Is Happening

InnovationGamingChatGPT Is Down, Here’s What OpenAI Says Is HappeningByErik Kain, Senior Contributor. Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about TV shows, movies, video games, entertainment & culture.Follow AuthorAug 19, 2026, 08:24pm EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.CHONGQING, CHINA - AUGUST 9: In this photo illustration, a person holds a smartphone displaying the ChatGPT logo on its screen in front of a blurred OpenAI logo on August 9, 2025 in Chongqing, China. (Photo illustration by Cheng Xin/Getty Images)Getty ImagesOne of the most popular and widely used AI apps is currently facing outages. According to the website’s status page, ChatGPT went down just under 20 minutes ago as of the time of this publication. From the Status page: We're currently experiencing issuesChatgpt.com is down - all signups and logins are down as of right nowWe have identified that users are experiencing login issues for the impacted services.MORE FOR YOUWe are working on implementing a mitigation.On the website Down Detector, reports spiked at around 5pm PT / 8pm ET as users began reporting login issues, difficulty loading chats and other problems, though many are still able to access the ChatGPT website. This is a developing story and I will update it if more information becomes available. It appears that the site is unable to fetch authentication verification keys, and logins and signups are down while the APIs, Codex and ChatGPT itself are all up and running. The good news is these outages are usually resolved quickly. Stay tuned. Editorial StandardsReprints & PermissionsLOADING VIDEO PLAYER...FORBES’ FEATURED VideoExplore Topic