Critical Usage Experience and Real-Time Message Counter Feature Request

To the OpenAI Team

First, I want to express my appreciation for the profound impact ChatGPT has had on my productivity and creative endeavors. Its ability to synthesize complex thoughts, adapt fluidly to a wide range of topics, and provide instantaneous feedback has, in many ways, mirrored the intellectual agility we strive for in human collaboration. However, even in this technological marvel, there lies a friction point that—if addressed—could unlock even greater potential.

The Problem

As a paying customer who depends on uninterrupted workflows, I’ve come to recognize a critical issue: the absence of a real-time message counter within the ChatGPT interface. Currently, users are left navigating blind, unaware of when their session will be abruptly cut off due to message limits. The result is not merely an inconvenience; it is the sudden collapse of progress—a disruption that can be devastating in high-stakes scenarios.

Imagine working through a complex technical problem, orchestrating precise steps toward resolution, only to find the interaction terminated without warning. Whether troubleshooting systems, developing software, or handling critical emergencies, this uncertainty can turn an otherwise efficient process into a time sink. The capacity to anticipate and adapt is what allows humans to excel, but without visibility into message usage, that capacity is stifled.

Proposed Solution

This feature is not unlike the familiar character limit counters seen in many online forms. When a user is presented with such a limit, they intuitively understand the need for brevity, precision, and efficiency. The same principle applies here, but with stakes that extend far beyond the concise crafting of a tweet or form submission. As our everyday lives become increasingly symbiotic with AI systems, the ability to monitor and optimize interactions is no longer a luxury—it is a necessity.

I propose integrating a real-time message counter directly into the ChatGPT interface. This counter would serve as a navigational aid, offering users:

  • Transparency: A visible indicator of remaining messages allows for informed pacing.
  • Warnings: Notifications at critical thresholds (e.g., 80% and 90%) would prevent sudden disruptions.
  • Efficiency: Freed from the burden of manually tracking usage, users can focus solely on the task at hand.

Implementation Suggestion

  • Display a small counter at the bottom of the chat interface, akin to character counters in forms.
  • Provide an optional toggle for users who prefer a cleaner interface.
  • Introduce in-app alerts as usage approaches critical levels.

Why This Matters

Trust in AI systems is not derived solely from their computational brilliance but from the predictability and reliability of their interactions. A feature as simple as a message counter could mean the difference between a user trusting ChatGPT to assist with life-dependent scenarios—or avoiding it altogether out of concern for unexpected failures. The stakes are not hypothetical: in mission-critical environments, abrupt disruptions can cascade into larger problems.

Moreover, this feature aligns with OpenAI’s broader mission of empowering humanity through AI. By fostering transparency and control, you grant users the autonomy to maximize their efficiency without fear of being blindsided.

I would be more than willing to contribute further insights or assist in testing this feature should you see its value. As someone deeply invested in the symbiosis of human and machine intelligence, I view this as a pivotal improvement.

Thank you for considering this proposal. I look forward to the continued evolution of ChatGPT as an indispensable tool for professionals and creatives alike.

Sincerely,
James Dennis

That’s a feature that should be fairly easy to implement!

Great idea!

  • Transparency: A visible indicator of remaining messages allows for informed pacing.

Except for this I would assume since it rather has to do with the length of the combined prompts and responses from the model.
But adding a warning once it reaches 80% of possible capacity might resolve into the same desired outcome.

@edwinarbus ?

Welcome to the developer community!

I’m not yet part of this community. This is my first post here. I have been tinkering around with this technology for a bit and while, my immediate needs are not vital, I can project into others’ needs. Thank you kindly for responding expeditiously. I intend to be more involved and anything I can do to test new features; I welcome the opportunity. I am a software engineer and cut my teeth in healthcare HIS and Salesforce.

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I am currently working on a no limit solution based on a GraphDB that basically just grabs the most important stuff from the current conversation (and also older ones when it has important relations) and enriches the next prompt with that.

Pretty close to finish it actually.

Also doing code mapping and other stuff so you can feed it with millions of lines of code and it can still reason over it and extract the meaning from it to transform it to another architecture in case you have an old application that needs an automatic update…

What do you use to determine what “the most important stuff” is?

Temporal distance, semantical distance, fuzzy search, just to name a few… it is pretty complex.

It sounds complex. My knowledge in this space is practically non-existent and I want to learn. Where do I start?

I would say you can try, but I don’t recommend it. Might be the worst decades of your life. No sleep, working 300-400 hours per month… Going through some burnouts.
You really shouldn’t!

I mean you can split it up in simpler learning tasks over a period of 60-70 years.

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You’re funny. I’m 53 and with AI, I will live another 60 years (joke). I like challenges.