Sora in 2026
Sora Was Discontinued. Here's What That Means.
OpenAI ended the Sora app and web experience on April 26, 2026; the API follows on September 24, 2026. If you were waiting for access, the wait is over in the wrong direction. This page covers the dates, the surviving video tools — and what genuinely works in Telegram today: images, not video, and we say so plainly.
Scope
We never had Sora — and we won't pretend to replace it
VUST has no video generation: not Sora's, not Veo's, not anyone's. What's live in Telegram is the still-image toolkit — text-to-image, prompt edits, background replacement, each operation billed only for a delivered result — plus frontier chat models for scripts and shot lists. That covers the planning-and-stills half of a video project; the rendering half belongs to the dedicated video vendors listed above.
See the difference
The timeline, the landscape after, and the Telegram scope.
Who lands here
- The access-waiters
- Still hunting a Sora invite in 2026
- The hunt is over: OpenAI discontinued the app and web on April 26, 2026. Any 'access trick' content post-dating that is describing a ghost.
- Video-project planners
- A project that assumed Sora would render it
- Veo, Kling, Runway, Luma and Pika remain the active vendors. For the stills half — storyboards, key frames, thumbnails — Telegram image generation works today — you pay only for a delivered result.
- The rug-pull wary
- Deciding which AI products to depend on
- Sora's arc (US sunset March 13, 2026 → full consumer discontinuation April 26 → API end September 24) is a fair case study in platform risk. Per-use beats prepaid when products can vanish.
The timeline, verified
- 01
March 13, 2026
Sora 1 sunset for US users — the first public step of the wind-down.
- 02
April 26, 2026
OpenAI discontinues the Sora app and web experience entirely, per its own help center notice.
- 03
September 24, 2026
The Sora API is slated for discontinuation — existing integrations only until then. No consumer path remains.
The stills half works today
Storyboards, key frames, thumbnails: generate and edit images in Telegram, paying only for delivered results — and draft scripts with frontier chat models.
What it can and cannot do
VUST has no video generation
Not Sora's, not anyone's — and this page will keep saying so until that changes. The link counts interest; it does not unlock a feature.
What IS live nearby
Text-to-image, prompt edits, background replacement and enhancement in @vustPortraitBot, paid per operation and only for a delivered result — the still-image half of many video projects.
No invented reasons
OpenAI's notice gives dates, not a detailed rationale. We report the dates and decline to speculate — a page about the facts shouldn't guess.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sora shut down?
The consumer product, yes: OpenAI's help center states the Sora app and web experiences were discontinued on April 26, 2026. The API operates for existing users until September 24, 2026. Sora 1 had already been sunset for US users on March 13, 2026.
Can I still get Sora access somehow?
There is no consumer path: no app, no web access, no sign-up list. The remaining API window (until September 24, 2026) serves existing integrations. Treat any 2026 'Sora invite' offer as a scam signal.
Why did OpenAI discontinue Sora?
OpenAI's public notice announces the discontinuation and dates without a detailed rationale, and we won't invent one. What's factual: the consumer experiences ended April 26, 2026, and the API follows September 24, 2026.
What are the real Sora alternatives for video?
Google's Veo family, Kling, Runway, Luma and Pika are the active text-to-video players as of mid-2026. Access models differ (subscriptions, credits, API-only) and change often — check each vendor directly. We don't run any of them, so we can't and won't rank them by output quality.
Does VUST offer video generation?
No. Plainly: no video generation exists in any VUST bot today. The nearby live capability is images — generation and editing in @vustPortraitBot, paid per operation and billed only for a delivered result. The link on this page doubles as a demand counter for video; pressing it does not unlock a video feature, because none exists.
What can I actually do in Telegram for a video project right now?
The still-image half: storyboards, key frames, thumbnails, style exploration and concept art via text-to-image and prompt editing, priced per image and billed only for a delivered result. Plus script and shot-list drafting with frontier chat models in @vustbot. The rendering of moving footage stays with the dedicated video vendors.
What works while video doesn't.
Ready when you are
Sora ended. Your project didn't.
Rendering moves to the surviving video vendors; planning, scripts and stills run in Telegram today — per-use, no subscription to strand.