Gboard text input skipping in ChatGPT for Android? Try this workaround

A growing number of Android users are reporting a frustrating issue with the ChatGPT app, where the Gboard keyboard is skipping, becomes unresponsive or glitchy during text input. This problem, which appears to be exclusive to the ChatGPT app, is causing missed keystrokes, random capitalization, and even complete unresponsiveness.

Users have taken to online forums and social media to share their experiences, describing the issue as making the app “almost unusable.” Some users have reported the issue occurring after the latest ChatGPT outage, while others have noticed it gradually worsening over the past few weeks.

One user, who owns a Pixel 8 Pro, shared that their keyboard inexplicably switches to caps lock while typing, resulting in slow typing speeds and numerous typos due to the lack of autocorrect. This problem, they noted, only occurs within the ChatGPT app and not in any other application on their device.

Another Pixel 7 user echoed these sentiments, explaining that the keyboard often fails to register key presses or randomly jumps to caps lock, interfering with the autocorrect function. They also highlighted a specific issue with holding down keys, such as the backspace button, which causes the keyboard to become unresponsive.

Another user on a Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra described the keyboard as typing “unresponsively,” with some keys getting double-tapped and others being skipped altogether. I tried to reproduce this issue on my Android device but failed, suggesting it likely affects a limited set of users. Below is a video of the issue shared on Reddit:

While an official fix has yet to be released, some users have discovered temporary workarounds. Switching to an alternative keyboard, such as SwiftKey, appears to resolve the issue for some. This suggests that the problem might be linked to Gboard’s compatibility with the ChatGPT app. Another user reported success by uninstalling recent Gboard updates, although pinpointing the exact version that introduced the glitch remains challenging due to the varied timelines of when users first noticed the issue.

The exact cause of the issue remains unclear. Some users suspect it’s a Gboard issue, while others believe the ChatGPT app itself could be to blame. But the fact that the issue only occurs within the ChatGPT app suggests a potential incompatibility between the two.

Despite the growing reports, neither Google nor OpenAI has issued a statement addressing the problem. This silence has only added to the frustration of affected users who are seeking permanent solutions. Hopefully, either Google or OpenAI will address the issue soon with an update. In the meantime, those affected can try the aforementioned workarounds or resort to using ChatGPT on a different device or platform.

Gboard users are also dealing with an issue where the keyboard automatically capitalizes the first letters of words mid-sentence.