ChatGPT project chat branched into Work: desktop scrolling gets stuck, then branch cannot reopen (“hit a snag”)

Summary

A ChatGPT conversation inside a ChatGPT project was branched into a Work session, then opened in the ChatGPT desktop app. In that Work branch, scrolling initially allowed movement upward but not back down to later messages. The problem then progressed to a full “ChatGPT hit a snag” screen, and the affected conversation could no longer be reopened in desktop. Other chats still work.

The ChatGPT project chat → branch into Work → open that branch in desktop path is material to this report. This was not reported as a newly created local Codex project or a Git branch operation.

Environment

• Product: ChatGPT desktop app, opening a Work branch of a ChatGPT project conversation.
• App version: Version 26.908.70816, Sept 14, 2026.
• OS version / architecture: MacOs Tahoe 26.6.2 25G83.
• Subscription: $200 max plan.
• Original conversation was long and contained substantial formatted assistant responses. Exact size/token count is unknown.

Observed sequence / reproduction path

These are the steps observed with the affected conversation, not a verified minimal reproduction with a new conversation:

1. Start with an existing ChatGPT chat inside a ChatGPT project.
2. Branch that chat into a Work session.
3. Open the Work branch in the ChatGPT desktop app.
4. Review the inherited conversation history. Initially, the transcript appears to stop partway through an earlier assistant response.
5. Reopen the session. Earlier messages can be seen and the user can scroll upward, but cannot scroll back down to later messages. The user confirms the later messages are present in the Web version; the initial apparent truncation is a scrolling problem.
6. The desktop view subsequently changes to the full error screen transcribed below.
7. Attempt to reopen the affected chat: it no longer opens successfully in desktop.
8. Other chats in the desktop app continue to work.

Actual result

The screenshot supplied by the user shows:

ChatGPT hit a snag

Something went wrong. Try again to continue.

Buttons: Try again and Update ChatGPT.

see attached image

The user reports already having the latest update. The presence of the Update button is not evidence that their installation is outdated.

Expected result

A Work branch created from a ChatGPT project conversation should open in the desktop app, allow scrolling through all inherited and new messages in both directions, and remain reopenable.

Impact

The affected conversation cannot be continued in the desktop app. This blocks the intended workflow of carrying the existing project discussion into desktop Work to work with local files.

Evidence and limitations

• Submitted by the assistant at the affected user's explicit request, based on the user's observed sequence and supplied screenshot, see attached.
• No desktop logs, crash stack, feedback ID, or independently verified minimal reproduction are available to this reporting session.
• The cause is unknown. This report does not establish data loss, a renderer exception, or an app-server failure.
• Private conversation content and identifiers are omitted.

Related report

#42070 describes a desktop freeze after “Branch in new chat.” It may be related, but reports a different flow: immediate freezing on Linux that resolves with restart. This report concerns a ChatGPT project conversation branched into Work, followed by one-way scrolling and then a persistent failure to reopen that specific chat.

No repository files, tests, or entry points are named. Start by reproducing the ChatGPT project chat → Work branch → desktop flow on macOS, then inspect the desktop logs or feedback data mentioned as missing. Done means the affected branch opens, scrolls in both directions, and remains reopenable.