OpenAI's Sora App Is A Massive Hit, But The Reviews Tell A Different Story

Say what you will about OpenAI's ChatGPT and Sora, but as a creative, I avoid using them as much as possible. Don't get me wrong, I understand the allure, but I'm not on board with some of the inner workings of the technology. That doesn't change the fact that these platforms are extremely popular. The Sora app amassed over one million downloads on iPhone in just five days after its September launch. That's despite users needing a special invite code to start interacting with the app. Quite alarmingly, even with all those users downloading it, using the video creation tools, and generating to their heart's content, the Sora by OpenAI app currently has a less-than-three-star-rating — 2.8 stars as of writing.

If it's so popular, why the low rating? What we can gather from this information, and the massive influx of downloads, is that people really want to use Sora to create content, even if only to see what it's capable of. The problem or the discrepancy seems to be with the unlocked features after the hubbub dies down. For starters, you can't even use the app without an invite code and there are no guidelines for who gets one other than that OpenAI is prioritizing ChatGPT Pro users. The content restrictions can be incredibly limiting when you do get access, unless you're early. Of course, we can't overlook the alternatives, with Veo 3, Wan 2.5, and Runway Gen-3 Alpha. Though, with OpenAI planning to integrate Sora into ChatGPT, the combo alone may make things more accessible than comparable solutions.

Before you get up in arms that I dared to mention other video creation tools, I want to point out I'm not commenting on any one tool's capabilities — I'm not saying one is better than the others. The point I'm making is, while Sora 2 is impressive, there are alternatives on the market now with some excellent capabilities. It's by no means crowded or saturated, but there are more options. Now, there are some glaring feature differences, sure. For instance, with the right plan, you can generate 20-second-long videos with Sora 2 versus Veo 3's eight seconds. But you can also generate 4K 60-frames-per-second videos with the latter. Beyond those, Wan 2.5 seems slightly cheaper to use in its premium form. Again, not an argument for anything better, but there are instances where you might choose one over another.

Back to the app ratings, Sora 2 seems like it's taken a hit because of the limited access and restrictions users are seeing across the board. Plus, if you've used Sora's TikTok-like feed centered around AI videos, you'll likely find it's really not a great experience. Tightened moderation within the service, especially with copyrighted and protected materials, albeit for understandable reasons, appears to have made some users upset, as well. Where you could use Sora 2 to generate known IPs before, the OpenAI team has put a huge tamper on that. Sam Altman did release a blog update stating they will allow "more granular control" over character generation by introducing an "opt-in model for likeness," allowing IP creators to opt in. But in the same blog, Altman says OpenAI will "have to somehow make money for video generation" because people are using Sora so much. That'll ruffle some feathers.