"I agree with you - the old way (topic-based titles) made the sidebar much more useful. When ChatGPT generated a title from the subject of the conversation, it acted like a quick index.
Now with the generic labels ("Summary and timeline"), you have to open each one or remember to rename them, which is extra work and makes it harder to spot past chats at a glance."
"Why OpenAI Might Have Switched Consistency: Generic titles are "safer" because the auto-summarizer sometimes mis-titled chats (e.g., grabbing a detail that didn't represent the whole conversation). Privacy concerns: Some users didn't like sensitive info appearing as sidebar titles. *Technical reasons: Chat title generation has always been a separate summarization step. OpenAI may be testing a lighter/faster method in the Mac app or web portal."