Unsora/Unsora vs Sora
Unsora vs Sora: Not the Same Thing
By Rez Karim, building Unsora · Last updated:
No. Unsora is not Sora, and OpenAI doesn't make it. Sora was OpenAI's video model and app, shut down in 2026. Unsora is an independent product that gives ChatGPT, Claude and other AI agents 11 creative tools over MCP.
Key takeaways
- Unsora and Sora come from different companies. Sora was OpenAI's video model. Unsora is an independent toolkit your AI agent uses over MCP, with video models from Google, ByteDance and Kuaishou.
- OpenAI closed the Sora app and website on April 26, 2026 and the Sora API on September 24, 2026.
- Unsora no longer offers Sora 2. Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.5, Kling 3 and Gemini Omni Flash cover the jobs people used it for.
- We surveyed 1,860 Unsora users. 18% thought Unsora was made by OpenAI or connected to Sora before signing up, and 21% weren't sure.
- Unsora costs $19, $39 or $149 a month, with a 3-day free trial. An 8-second clip starts at 43 credits.
The two names differ by two letters, and both products made AI video. So people ask whether Unsora is Sora under a new name, a Sora reseller, or something OpenAI runs. AI assistants get asked the same thing, and they don't always answer it well.
The question matters more since Sora shut down. Former Sora users are looking for somewhere to go, and a wrong answer sends them to a product they think is something else.
This page answers it with dates and a side-by-side table. It also covers what changed inside Unsora on September 24 and what 1,860 Unsora users told us about the mix-up.
Is Unsora the same as Sora?
No. Sora was OpenAI's video model and app. Unsora is a separate, independent product that plugs several companies' models into the AI agent you already use, such as ChatGPT or Claude.
Put simply, Sora was an engine and Unsora is a toolbox. Sora made video with one model that OpenAI built. Unsora lets you pick from video models made by Google, ByteDance and Kuaishou, plus tools for images, thumbnails, clips and subtitles.
The table compares them as of September 28, 2026. Sora's facts come from OpenAI's own pages and launch coverage. Unsora's come from our own model list and the Unsora MCP page.
| Sora | Unsora | |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | OpenAI | Unsora AI, an independent company |
| What it is | A text-to-video model and the app built on it | A creative toolkit your AI agent uses over MCP to run other companies' models; also a web app |
| Relationship to OpenAI | OpenAI's own product | Independent. Not made, owned or endorsed by OpenAI |
| Status (September 2026) | Discontinued: app and website April 26, 2026; API September 24, 2026 | Available |
| Video models | Sora, then Sora 2 and Sora 2 Pro | Veo 3.1 (Google), Seedance 2.5 (ByteDance), Kling 3 (Kuaishou), Gemini Omni Flash (Google) |
| Where you use it | sora.com, the Sora app, ChatGPT and OpenAI's API | Your AI agent: ChatGPT, Claude, OpenClaw, Hermes, Claude Code or Cursor over MCP; also a web app |
| What it makes besides video | Sound for its videos, and a social feed in the Sora app | Images, thumbnails, AI influencers, clips, subtitles, 4K and 8K upscales, scheduled posts |
| Price | Came with ChatGPT Plus ($20 a month) and Pro ($200 a month) | $19, $39 or $149 a month; 3-day free trial |
| Same product? | No | No |
What was Sora?
Sora was OpenAI's text-to-video model. OpenAI previewed it in February 2024 and opened it to ChatGPT Plus and Pro subscribers on sora.com on December 9, 2024. On September 30, 2025, it released Sora 2 alongside a Sora social app.
Sora is gone now. OpenAI announced the shutdown on March 24, 2026, closed the Sora website and app on April 26, 2026, and switched off the Sora API on September 24, 2026, according to OpenAI's Help Center. You can still export old videos at sora.chatgpt.com/sunset. OpenAI says it will permanently delete Sora data after any final export window.
Sora did some things well. Sora 2 generated synchronized dialogue and sound effects with the video, and OpenAI said it obeyed the laws of physics better than earlier models. Its social app also let people drop themselves into any scene with a feature called "characters".
What is Unsora?
Unsora is a creative toolkit for AI agents. ChatGPT, Claude, OpenClaw, Hermes, Claude Code and Cursor connect to it over MCP. You ask your agent for a video, image, thumbnail or clip, the agent calls the Unsora tool, and the file comes back in the chat.
It has 11 tools: Video Generator, Image Generator, Influencer Studio, Movie Materials Generator, Thumbnail Generator, Image Upscaler, Video Upscaler, Motion Control, AI Clipping, Subtitle Editor and Subtitle Remover. It also has a scheduler that posts finished files to social platforms. Your agent can use every one of them, the two upscalers included.
In Claude, a request like "make an 8-second vertical video of a lighthouse at dusk, waves breaking on the rocks, with Veo 3.1 Fast" runs Unsora's create_videotool. Claude asks before the tool runs, then the clip comes back in the conversation with sound. If you don't name a model, it uses Seedance 2.5. Each clip costs credits from your Unsora plan.
Unsora is built by an independent team, and I'm part of it. OpenAI doesn't own, run or endorse it.
Does Unsora use OpenAI at all?
Yes, for images only. Unsora's Image Generator offers OpenAI's GPT Image 1.5 and GPT Image 2, next to image models from Google and ByteDance. Paying OpenAI for API access to a model makes Unsora an OpenAI customer. It doesn't make Unsora an OpenAI product.
Can you still use Sora 2 in Unsora?
No. Unsora offered Sora 2 and Sora 2 Pro until OpenAI shut down the Sora API on September 24, 2026. We have removed both models.
If Sora 2 was your model, the table matches each job to the Unsora model that does it now. Credits are per clip at the length shown and come from Unsora's own model list on September 25, 2026. For reference, an 8-second Sora 2 clip cost 43 credits in Unsora.
| If you used Sora 2 for… | Use this in Unsora | Why | Credits per clip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cinematic shots with sound | Veo 3.1 | Google's flagship video model, with generated audio | 169 with audio, 85 without (8 seconds) |
| The same, cheaper | Veo 3.1 Fast | Same family, lower cost | 65 with audio, 43 without (8 seconds) |
| People, faces and consistent characters | Seedance 2.5 | Accepts reference images and video | 127 for 10 seconds, 64 for 5 |
| Lots of short clips on a budget | Seedance 2.5 Fast | Faster, lower-cost Seedance | 37 for 5 seconds |
| High motion and camera moves | Kling 3 Pro | Strong, fast motion | 148 for 10 seconds, 74 for 5 |
| Short clips with synced audio | Gemini Omni Flash | Audio made with the video | 74 for 8 seconds |
Veo 3.1 is the closest match for Sora-style cinematic shots with sound, at 169 credits for 8 seconds with audio. The lighthouse clip above used Veo 3.1 Fast, which costs 65 credits for the same length with audio.
Did Unsora users think it was Sora? We asked 1,860 of them
18% of the 1,860 Unsora users we surveyed thought Unsora was made by OpenAI or connected to Sora before they signed up, and another 21% weren't sure. The other 61% knew it was a separate product.
How we ran it.From September 12 to September 25, 2026, we surveyed Unsora users aged 18 and over with four questions, in the web app and by email. We asked whether they had thought Unsora was made by OpenAI or connected to Sora before signing up, where they first heard of Unsora, whether they had used OpenAI's Sora before it shut down, and, if they had, which Unsora model they now use most. 1,860 users answered. We report percentages only and dropped any group with fewer than 50 answers.
What we found:
- Where people first heard of Unsora made the biggest difference. 26% of users who first heard of Unsora in an AI assistant's answer thought it was connected to Sora, against 15% of those who found it through a search engine and 14% of those who saw it on Reddit, YouTube or social media.
- 44% had used OpenAI's Sora before it shut down. Many of Unsora's users came from Sora, which helps explain why the two names get linked.
- Former Sora users mostly moved to Seedance 2.5 and Veo 3.1. Among respondents who had used Sora, 36% use Seedance 2.5 most, 28% Veo 3.1, 16% Kling 3 and 6% Gemini Omni Flash. 9% were still using Sora 2 inside Unsora, which we removed after OpenAI shut the API down on September 24. Only 5% said they haven't found a replacement.
| Where they first heard of Unsora | Thought it was made by OpenAI or connected to Sora |
|---|---|
| An AI assistant's answer | 26% |
| A search engine | 15% |
| Reddit, YouTube or social media | 14% |
What this means for you.If you assumed Unsora was Sora, you're not alone, and an AI assistant is the likeliest place that idea came from. Check what a tool is before you pay for it. If you're coming from Sora, the models other former Sora users picked are a good place to start: Seedance 2.5 for people and characters, Veo 3.1 for cinematic shots with sound.
Why do people mix up Unsora and Sora?
People mix them up for three reasons: the similar names, the timing, and the fact that Unsora really did offer Sora 2 until OpenAI switched off the Sora API in September 2026.
The names are close, and both products made AI video, so a quick search for one often turns up the other.
The timing added to it. Many people went looking for a new home for their Sora projects after the app closed in April 2026. Some of them landed on Unsora, where Sora 2 was one of the models on offer for a while.
The mix-up between models and platforms also plays a part. On r/SoraAi, one user said Seedance through Unsora gave results closest to Sora, and complained about the price. That user was describing a model (Seedance) running on a platform (Unsora), which is exactly the relationship Sora never had. The pricing section below answers the cost question.
Who should use Unsora, and who was Sora for?
Sora suited people who wanted single cinematic clips inside OpenAI's own apps. Unsora suits creators, social media managers and agencies who want their AI agent to hand them finished media files without leaving the chat they work in.
- You want OpenAI's Sora itself.It's gone. Export your old videos from sora.chatgpt.com/sunset.
- You want Sora-like cinematic clips with sound. Use Veo 3.1 in Unsora, or Veo 3.1 Fast to spend less.
- You make content for clients from ChatGPT or Claude. Connect Unsora over MCP and ask your agent for videos, thumbnails, clips and scheduled posts in the same chat you write in.
- You need consistent characters across clips.Use Seedance 2.5 with reference images, or Unsora's Influencer Studio.
- You only ever use one model, at high volume.That model's own app or API may cost less than going through any platform, Unsora included.
How much does Unsora cost compared with Sora?
Unsora has three plans: Basic at $19 a month for 500 credits, Pro at $39 for 1,100 and Power at $149 for 5,000. Each starts with a 3-day free trial. Sora came with ChatGPT Plus ($20 a month) and ChatGPT Pro ($200 a month) until OpenAI closed it, and had no price of its own.
| Plan | Price per month | Credits | Cost per credit | 8-second Veo 3.1 Fast clips (43 credits) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $19 | 500 | $0.038 | 11 |
| Pro | $39 | 1,100 | $0.035 | 25 |
| Power | $149 | 5,000 | $0.030 | 116 |
The last column is plain division, to show what a month of credits buys. Mixing models changes it: a month on Pro covers 6 Veo 3.1 clips with audio at 169 credits each, or 29 five-second Seedance 2.5 Fast clips at 37.
Connecting Unsora to your AI agent is free. Only generating uses credits. Current plans are on the pricing section of our homepage.
How do you set up Unsora in ChatGPT or Claude?
Add Unsora to your agent as a connector with the server URL https://mcp.tryunsora.com/mcp, sign in to Unsora, and ask for what you need.
- 01In Claude, open Customize → Connectors → Add custom connector. In ChatGPT, on a paid plan, turn on Developer mode and add a connector under Settings → Connectors.
- 02Paste the server URL
https://mcp.tryunsora.com/mcp. - 03Sign in with your Unsora account when asked.
- 04Ask for something, like the lighthouse clip above. Claude shows which Unsora tool it wants to use and what it will send, and waits for you. Pick Allow once, or Always allow to skip the question next time.
OpenClaw, Claude Code and Cursor connect with the same URL or an Unsora API key (it starts with uns_) instead of a sign-in. Two limits apply in every agent. A video takes a few minutes to generate, and the agent can't watch the video it made. Full steps for each client are on the Unsora MCP page and the connector page.
What can't Unsora do that Sora could?
Unsora can't give you OpenAI's Sora model, Sora's social feed or its characters feature. Clip length is no longer a gap: Seedance 2.5 makes up to 30 seconds per generation, according to ByteDance's launch post, longer than the 20-second clips Sora 2 made in Unsora.
A few other limits are worth knowing before you sign up:
- Premium models use credits fast. One 8-second Veo 3.1 clip with audio costs 169 credits, a third of the Basic plan's 500.
- There's no free plan after the 3-day trial.
How we checked these facts
We took Sora's dates and features from OpenAI's own pages, its Help Center and news coverage of the launch and shutdown, checked on September 25, 2026. Unsora's models, credit costs and plans come from our own model list and the /mcp and /connector pages, checked the same day, with model names updated to the current versions on September 28, 2026. The survey section above explains who we asked and how. We re-check this page every month and whenever a model is added or removed.
FAQ
Yes. Unsora has published terms, public prices, a 3-day free trial on every plan, and cancellation at any time.
It runs several of the models people moved to after Sora closed, including Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.5 and Kling 3. It isn't a copy of Sora, and it doesn't run Sora.
Go to sora.chatgpt.com/sunset and click Export. OpenAI emails you when the export is ready and deletes Sora data after any final export window.
OpenAI hasn't announced a return. It told CNN that the Sora research team continues to work on world simulation for robotics.
Yes, two image models: GPT Image 1.5 and GPT Image 2. None of Unsora's video models come from OpenAI.
Yes. OpenClaw, Hermes, Claude Code and Cursor connect with the same MCP URL or an Unsora API key, and get all 11 tools. If you'd rather not use an agent, the same tools are also in the web app, which you can open after you sign up.
Yes. Every plan starts with a 3-day free trial, and you can cancel any time.
The "un-" is the idea: no single model and no single app. Sora was one model inside OpenAI's own app. Unsora lets your AI agent pick from several companies' models, right in the chat you already use. The name plays on Sora; it doesn't mean any tie to OpenAI.