The status notice is now the key fact
OpenAI's official pages for Sora, Sora 2 and its safety documentation carry the same notice: as of April 26, 2026, the Sora product is no longer available. The pages remain online as records of the model's launch and safety approach, but they no longer describe a product a new user can access.
That creates a common research trap. Search results and old comparisons can rank long after availability changes. Any current guide that recommends Sora without checking the notice risks sending readers into a dead workflow.
What existing coverage still tells us
Sora 2 was introduced in September 2025 with synchronized dialogue and sound effects, stronger physical consistency and provenance measures including visible watermarks and C2PA metadata. Those details remain useful for understanding the direction of AI video and the safety questions the product raised.
They should not be converted into present-tense claims about access, price or roadmap. OpenAI's notice confirms the product status but does not, on those pages, provide a replacement schedule. Where the company has not explained a decision, responsible coverage should leave the reason open.
A migration checklist for creators
Teams with Sora-era projects should preserve exported video, prompts, source assets, licenses and provenance records. Then list the features the workflow actually depended on—reference control, synchronized audio, editing, resolution or API access—before choosing another model.
Test replacements with the same owned assets and disclose when a tool changes. Model availability is now part of production risk: important projects need exportable files, documented prompts and an alternative path before a vendor sunset arrives.
Sources & further reading
Social-media activity is treated as a signal of attention, not proof. Product claims are attributed to the linked publisher or announcement.