What is Sora?
Sora is a text-to-video generation model developed by OpenAI.
The company behind ChatGPT and DALL-E released the tool in December 2024 as a reaction to other rivals in the artificial intelligence (AI) field like Google and Meta.
Sora got its name after the Japanese word for sky to signify its “limitless potential”, according to the developers.
What can Sora do?
The AI model is designed to generate videos up to a minute long based on the user’s prompt.
Available demos show complex scenes with multiple characters and camera in motion.
However, OpenAI has also acknowledged some of Sora’s limitations, such as struggling to simulate complex physics and understand causality.
In line with the company’s policies, the AI model is set to refuse prompts for sexual, violent and hateful content, as well as videos of celebrities and public figures.
How to access Sora?
Sora is currently available only through the official website sora.chatgpt.com.
There is no separate app for Android or iOS, but the website is optimised to work on mobile devices as well.
Is Sora part of ChatGPT?
While Sora is accessible only through its own website at the moment, OpenAI has announced plans to integrate the video generator into ChatGPT.
This would allow users to generate video from prompts within the chat window without the need to leave the app.
How to use Sora?
Running on a large language model (LLM), Sora understands natural human speech, which makes it very easy to give instructions.
At the bottom of the screen, describe your desired video or upload an image/video file you want to modify.
Then you use the drop-down menu to choose the aspect ratio, resolution, duration and the number of variations you want to create.
It may take a minute or two for Sora to generate the video. However, you may sometimes have to wait in a queue for several hours, especially during peak times.
Once it is done, you can use Sora Video Editor to trim or extend the clip, use transition effects or create a seamless loop.
When you are happy, you can save the video to your online library, share it with your friends via a link or download it in an MP4 format.
Is Sora free to use?
Sora is currently not available for free. It is included in ChatGPT Plus and Pro premium plans.
How much does Sora cost in the UK?
The cheapest option at the moment is paying for ChatGPT Plus plan, which costs £20 a month and allows you to generate up to 720p resolution and 10s duration videos with a small watermark.
Along with that, you will also get extended access to OpenAI’s most advanced model GPT-5, extended limits on file uploads and image generation, as well as limited access to Agent.
For the highest level of access, you can subscribe to ChatGPT Pro, which runs for £200 a month.
Apart from FullHD 1080p resolution, it offers double the duration (20s).
You can also generate up to five videos at the same time and download them without watermarks.
The plan comes with unlimited access to GPT-5 and extended access to Agent.
