Don’t like your DALL-E images? OpenAI now lets you edit them.

Because DALL-E doesn't always get it right the first time.
By Cecily Mauran  on 
DALL-E logo on a phone
DALL-E images are now more editable. Credit: Bartek Winnicki / Shutterstock.com

You can now edit DALL-E images if your AI-generated image needs a tweak here and there.

This week, OpenAI released an editor interface tool, which lets users make edits by describing changes in a text prompts.

As explained in the DALL-E help section which was updated this week with instructions for using the tool, there are two main ways of editing images. The first is by highlighting a part of the image and giving specific instructions for that area, and the second is by making overall changes to the image in the chat sidebar.

How to edit images in DALL-E

To highlight part of the image and make edits to specific parts of the picture on desktop, there's a new select button depicted as a swooping paintbrush icon. From there, you can add, remove, or enhance the highlighted part in the editor text box by giving prompts like, "add flowers." You can also use the select tool the ChatGPT mobile app and highlight areas with your finger.

Mashable Light Speed
Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?
Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.
By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Thanks for signing up!

To make general edits, enter a prompt in the chat in the sidebar, like "make it black and white." This feature also works on the ChatGPT mobile app.

OpenAI's DALL-E is just one of many AI image generators on the market these days. Microsoft's Copilot image generator is powered by OpenAI's latest model, DALL-E 3, but Google has its own tool within its Gemini model (which came under fire recently for rendering Nazis as people of color and other historical inaccuracies, leading the company to pause Gemini while it fixed its historiography problem.) These, plus other tools out there by Midjourney and Stability AI, make the competition fierce for creating images using generative AI.

AI-generated images are increasingly prevalent, as demonstrated by their integration into search results and their utilization in films such as Late Night with the Devil and promotional materials (with apologies to Willy Wonka and the children of Glasgow).

From this standpoint, it's probably a good move on OpenAI's part to make AI-generated images more editable.

Meanwhile, OpenAI is focusing on expanding generative AI in multimedia with the announcement of its video generator Sora, and most recently, a voice creator called Voice Engine.

Mashable Image
Cecily Mauran

Cecily is a tech reporter at Mashable who covers AI, Apple, and emerging tech trends. Before getting her master's degree at Columbia Journalism School, she spent several years working with startups and social impact businesses for Unreasonable Group and B Lab. Before that, she co-founded a startup consulting business for emerging entrepreneurial hubs in South America, Europe, and Asia. You can find her on Twitter at @cecily_mauran.


Recommended For You
TikTok Trouble, Meta’s AI Girlfriend Problem, and Doja Coin
U Need to Know This Episode 62

The best laptops of 2024, tested and reviewed
15-inch m3 macbook air on a table in coffee shop

The best graphics cards for upgrading your system
Graphics card

'The Daily Show' mocks the horniness of ChatGPT's AI voice assistant
A woman sits behind a talk show desk. In the top-left we can see a smartphone.

Apple and OpenAI 'finalizing terms' for bringing ChatGPT to iOS 18
Apple CEO Tim Cook with his hands together on stage at WWDC 2023

Trending on Mashable
NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for May 17
A phone displaying the New York Times game 'Connections.'


'Wordle' today: Here's the answer hints for May 17
a phone displaying Wordle

NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for May 16
A phone displaying the New York Times game 'Connections.'

NYT's The Mini crossword answers for May 17
Closeup view of crossword puzzle clues
The biggest stories of the day delivered to your inbox.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
Thanks for signing up. See you at your inbox!