Start a new chat without leaving the keyboard
keyboard shortcuts
// what it does
On chatgpt.com, Ctrl+Shift+O (Cmd+Shift+O on macOS) opens a fresh chat instantly. Each chat is its own context window, so starting a new one drops the earlier back-and-forth and keeps the model from being pulled off-topic by stale details. Your custom instructions and, if enabled, memory still carry into the new chat.
// shortcut
Ctrl+Shift+O
// gotcha
A new chat is not a private chat: it still reads and writes memory and follows your custom instructions. For a throwaway conversation that ignores memory and leaves no history, start a Temporary Chat instead (the pill-shaped button at the top-right of a new chat).