[DerJacques]

I agree that some parts of the process now seem more like “open”, but there is definitely a lot more magic in the new processing. Namely, threads can have an arbitrary length, and OpenAI automatically handles context window management for you. Their API now also handles retrieval of information from raw files, so you don’t need to worry about embeddings.

Lastly, you don’t even need any sort of database to keep track of threads and messages. The API is now stateful!

I think that most of these changes are exciting and make it a lot easier for people to get started. There is no doubt in my mind though that the API is now an even bigger blackbox, and lock-in is slightly increased depending on how you integrate with it.

[mvkel]

I wouldn't say the black box issue is unique to OpenAI. I suspect nobody could explain certain behaviors, including them.

As for lock in, agreed completely.

[kevindamm]

Indeterminate context, unknown/hidden values and a stateful API are usually reasons for me to look elsewhere for a solution.