Can the New Sora 2 Create Images, or Is It Now Fully Focused on Video Generation?

When OpenAI unveiled the first version of Sora earlier this year, the internet buzzed with awe. A single text prompt could conjure up vivid, detailed images or short video clips that felt pulled straight from reality. But with the arrival of Sora 2, users are discovering a key change: while video generation has taken a massive leap forward, still image creation has quietly stepped aside.

From image magic to motion realism

Sora 1, still available through OpenAI’s web interface, was built to handle both static and dynamic creations. You could select “Image” in the prompt window, describe a scene, adjust the aspect ratio, and even generate multiple variations at once. The images could then be remixed, refined, or stitched into short video sequences. It offered a seamless experience that felt like a blend of DALL·E and early Sora capabilities—simple, fast, and visually stunning.

Sora 2, however, is something different. It’s a full-scale leap into cinematic realism. The system focuses entirely on generating videos complete with movement, depth, and even ambient sound. Users can create entire film-like sequences from a single prompt, watching as AI breathes motion into still ideas. But it no longer includes a button for still images.

Technically, a video is just a rapid sequence of still frames, which means the system could, in theory, output single frames as standalone images. But for now, OpenAI seems to be keeping Sora 2’s attention locked on continuous motion rather than single snapshots.

Why this shift happened

The decision makes sense when you look at the broader landscape. DALL·E 3 and ChatGPT’s built-in image generation already cover the still-image market extremely well. OpenAI has been integrating those tools directly into ChatGPT Plus, Team, and Pro accounts, offering a powerful, easy-to-use way to create and remix images without needing to touch Sora at all.

Sora 2, meanwhile, represents OpenAI’s push to dominate the next medium: video. Generating realistic movement, coherent lighting, and sound synchronization are challenges far more complex than image synthesis. Sora 2’s architecture appears to prioritize that realism, learning from thousands of hours of visual data to predict how objects behave in motion, not just how they look when frozen in time.

User reactions so far

On forums like r/OpenAI, reactions have been mixed. Many early adopters express excitement about the cinematic power of Sora 2—being able to generate a living, breathing world from a simple sentence feels like science fiction finally made real. Others, however, miss the simplicity of being able to just make a single image on the same platform.

As one Reddit user put it, “I don’t always want a movie. Sometimes I just want one perfect frame.” Another chimed in that there’s no technical reason the model couldn’t produce stills, but OpenAI simply hasn’t enabled that functionality yet. That might change in future updates, but for now, users who want static art are still better off using ChatGPT’s “Image” mode or DALL·E 3.

How to create images while using Sora 2

For those looking to bridge both worlds, there’s a straightforward workflow:

• Start with Sora 1 or ChatGPT’s image generator. Write a text prompt describing your scene.
• Choose your aspect ratio (square, portrait, or cinematic).
• Generate and refine multiple images until you get your desired look.
• Export or remix that image inside ChatGPT.
• Then, feed the image or its description into Sora 2 to bring it to life as a video.

This workflow keeps creative control in the user’s hands. Artists and storytellers can fine-tune a single frame before animating it, ensuring continuity between the still and moving versions.

What’s next for Sora’s evolution

There’s little doubt that OpenAI will merge these capabilities down the line. Sora 2 already handles the visual and spatial modeling required for both still and moving images, so reintroducing a “generate still” option would be trivial from a technical standpoint. The challenge lies more in product focus—deciding whether to unify image and video creation under one name or continue treating them as distinct experiences.

Given how OpenAI tends to roll out features—starting with specialization, then unifying them once mature—it’s entirely possible that a future Sora 2.5 or Sora 3 will handle both. Imagine being able to pause your AI-generated video on any frame and export that moment as a print-ready image.

Until then, creators who love the still-image side of Sora’s technology can stick with the original Sora 1 experience on the web, which remains deeply integrated into ChatGPT’s ecosystem. It’s capable, consistent, and already optimized for Pro and Team accounts with extended generation limits.

The bottom line

Sora 2 is not a replacement for Sora 1—it’s an evolution in a new direction. The first was about capturing a moment; the second is about giving that moment movement, sound, and story.

If your goal is to craft a single image—a portrait, a landscape, a concept art piece—Sora 1 or ChatGPT’s built-in image tool remains the best option. But if you want to watch that image breathe, sway, and speak, Sora 2 is where the frontier begins.