Change record
CA-C-004499
OpenAI GPT-5 System Card
Entity
Date detected
August 20, 2026
Effective date
August 20, 2026
Severity
Low
Direction
Neutral
Changes
1 sentence modified

Impact Summary

Low Neutral for users
Affected users
All users

OpenAI's GPT-5 System Card was updated in an update detected on August 20, 2026. The document removed a reference to an August 18, 2026 article on 'Introducing ChatGPT for Teens' and replaced it with references to two articles: one on 'Offering Zero Data Retention for frontier models' dated August 19, 2026, and the retained 'Pacing model development in an era of cyber-critical capabilities' article. The substantive risk assessment language regarding biological harm remained unchanged. This change appears to reflect editorial updates to referenced materials rather than modifications to the model's risk evaluation or governance stance.

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What this means for you

This change is primarily editorial and does not alter the substantive risk assessments or governance terms that affect how GPT-5 operates. The System Card continues to state OpenAI's precautionary approach to biological harm risks. The updated references point users to information about zero-data-retention policies for frontier models and model development pacing, but the core operational terms remain unchanged.

Key Clauses Affected

biological harm risk assessment

Precautionary language unchanged; OpenAI continues to state it has no definitive evidence GPT-5 could meaningfully help a novice create severe biological harm.

Full clause-by-clause analysis available with Insight.

This change record describes what was added, removed, or modified in the document. Analysis reflects what the updated agreement states or permits. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Applicability may vary by jurisdiction. Methodology

Evidence Verification

✓ Verified
Previous Version
2ddb6533c570828cfbf85491c6b18de912e539a501ff812661375714b38a01e8
August 19, 2026 00:08 UTC
✓ Verified
Current Version
0d071abd13e43e8225932c3dda43d36f9cf52035ae972e1c3dba0e457e65bba8
August 20, 2026 00:07 UTC
✓ Verified
Change Detected
August 20, 2026 00:07 UTC
Analysis Methodology
✓ Verified
Source Document
https://openai.com/index/gpt-5-system-card/
Citation Record
Entity: OpenAI
Document: OpenAI GPT-5 System Card
Record ID: CA-C-004499
Captured: 2026-08-20 00:07:07 UTC
URL: https://conductatlas.com/change/2026-08-20-openai-openai-gpt-5-system-card-4499/
Accessed: Aug. 20, 2026
Permanent archival reference. Stable identifier suitable for legal filings, compliance documentation, and research citation.
For legal and compliance teams

Institutional Analysis

Assessment

This is a minor editorial update to OpenAI's GPT-5 System Card in which cross-referenced documents were revised. The substantive risk evaluation and precautionary language regarding biological harm capabilities remain unchanged. No new governance obligations or …

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Regulatory exposure, obligation change, escalation trigger, board-ready language, and recommended action for legal and compliance teams.

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ConductAtlas provides verified policy intelligence sourced directly from platform documents. All analysis is intended to support, not replace, legal and compliance review. Record CA-C-004499.

Full Changes

View complete diff →

Document Context

Version history → Policy drift analysis → Document page →
Document
OpenAI GPT-5 System Card
Entity
OpenAI
Captured
August 20, 2026
Source URL
https://openai.com/index/gpt-5-system-card/
Other changes to OpenAI GPT-5 System Card
Previous change Aug 19, 2026
OpenAI's GPT-5 System Card was updated on August 19, 2026 to replace references to three previously linked articles with two …
Low Neutral
View full version history →
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