[ChatGPT Android][Projects] Deleted Project link error persists in detached conversations

Summary

The ChatGPT Android app keeps showing a stale Project-link error in conversations that were previously associated with a Project, even after the conversation/content has been moved out and the original Project has been deleted.

The same account and the same conversation work normally on ChatGPT Web. The error appears to be Android-specific.

The Japanese UI message is:

このプロジェクトが見つかりません。
リンクを確認して、もう一度お試しください。

Equivalent English meaning:

This project could not be found.
Check the link and try again.

Scope note

This report concerns the first-party ChatGPT Android app rather than Codex itself. I am filing it here because there does not appear to be a dedicated public GitHub tracker for ChatGPT Android issues, and first-party ChatGPT Android bugs are already being reported in this repository. Please transfer or route this internally if another tracker is preferred.

Environment

• Product: ChatGPT for Android
• ChatGPT app version: 1.2026.223
• Android: 16
• Web: same account / same conversation does not show the error

Original sequence that triggered the issue

1. A conversation was being used inside a ChatGPT Project.
2. Before deleting the Project, the required conversations, Library items/files, and other needed content were moved out / preserved.
3. The affected conversation was removed from the Project.
4. The original Project was deleted.
5. Opening the affected conversation in the Android app now shows the stale Project error every time.
6. The conversation body itself remains available and usable.

Troubleshooting already attempted

All of the following were tried without resolving the problem:

• Log out of ChatGPT and log back in.
• Move the affected conversation into another Project, then remove it from that Project again.
• Completely clear ChatGPT Android app storage / app data.
• Log back in after the full app-data reset.
• Open the exact same conversation on ChatGPT Web.

After completely clearing Android app data, the error returns as soon as the same conversation is opened again after login.

By contrast, the same conversation on ChatGPT Web does not show this error.

Reproducibility

This does not appear to be a one-off corruption limited to the original Project.

Re-associating the conversation with another Project and later removing that Project association can cause the same stale "Project not found" state to appear again on Android.

This suggests that the problem is related to Android's handling of Project metadata/state after a Project association is removed or the referenced Project no longer exists.

Expected behavior

Once a conversation has been removed from a Project, and especially after that Project has been deleted, the conversation should no longer try to resolve or display a link to the deleted Project.

If a referenced Project lookup returns a not-found/deleted state, the client should discard or ignore the stale reference rather than showing the same error every time the conversation is opened.

Actual behavior

On Android, the affected conversation repeatedly shows:

This project could not be found. Check the link and try again.

Observed behavior:

• Persists after logout/login.
• Persists after moving the conversation into another Project and removing it again.
• Persists after a complete Android app-data/storage wipe.
• Can be triggered again through Project reassociation/removal.
• Does not reproduce on ChatGPT Web for the same conversation.
• Conversation content itself remains usable.

Why this looks like stale Project metadata rather than local cache

A complete Android app-data reset does not clear the behavior, while the Web client does not display the warning for the same server-side conversation.

This suggests that either:

1. stale/orphaned Project metadata remains associated with the conversation and Android interprets it differently from Web, or
2. Android is reconstructing / retaining an obsolete Project reference from server-provided conversation metadata.

The key issue is that the Android client continues attempting to resolve a Project reference that is no longer valid, instead of treating it as detached/deleted and suppressing the warning.

Screenshot

A screenshot of the Android error is available and can be added to the issue if needed.

The report names ChatGPT Android 1.2026.223 on Android 16 but no repository files, tests, or entry points. First verify the stale Project-link error using the described detach/delete sequence and compare Android with Web. Done means the detached conversation opens without attempting to resolve or display the deleted Project reference.