What is ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is a powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tool that allows anyone with a browser to get answers to questions and create content in a style that mimics human language — typically producing responses in seconds.
ChatGPT is able to fool people into thinking they are reading a piece written by a person and not a machine. Even smart Silicon Valley types fell for a column it wrote, edited by a human. ChatGPT wrote such credible fake scientific abstracts that experts often could not distinguish them from the real thing, a recent study found.
Even its developers were astonished at its skills, reports say, when ChatGPT behaved in ways they had not trained it to do, like generating computer code.
“For tech that is only a couple of years old, it is mind-blowing,” says Wits professor Benjamin Rosman, who runs its Robotics, Autonomous Intelligence and Learning Laboratory.
The release of this chatbot is a watershed moment not just for AI but for humanity, tech experts declare.
It is how we choose to use it which ultimately dictates if it is a positive thing, a negative thing or a bit of both
— Sumarie Roodt, co-founder and lead researcher at Tech4Good
Why has ChatGPT sparked global excitement, beyond the tech, security and business worlds?
Sumarie Roodt, co-founder and lead researcher at the University of Cape Town’s Tech4Good lab, explains why ChatGPT is a game-changer: “AI is not anything new, it has been around for many, many decades. It is simply that the launch of ChatGPT has bought AI to every household.
“Anybody with a mobile phone can download an app now that allows you to engage with ChatGPT, and it’s actually put that power to tap into an incredible source of learning in everybody’s hands. It’s a phenomenal opportunity.
“This is an incredible piece of tech that can enhance your capacity to learn, your capacity for critical thinking; it can enhance your access to information.
“I feel that it could be one of those major leaps for humans. Throughout history there have been these critical points of inflection where we have taken a giant leap in our evolution and … I think this may be one of those critical leap moments and I’m very excited about it.”
How is ChatGPT different from Google Search and virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant?
Virtual assistants are designed to search and retrieve relevant information that already exists. They act on voice commands and perform specific tasks using such information. In contrast, ChatGPT produces original content with a focus on “generating text”. Essentially it has learnt to predict the way “natural language” works after being trained on Wikipedia and being exposed to trillions of words on the internet and huge numbers of digital books.
Is ChatGPT creative?
Yes, in its own way, but don’t expect its poems or stories to be of award-winning quality. This language model can mimic the styles of famous artists, including songwriters and playwrights, and churn out content at lightning speed.
Where does it originate and where is it unwelcome?
OpenAI in San Francisco, California, is the software company which developed and released ChatGPT. About five years ago, top labs like OpenAI started developing transformer "neural networks" like ChatGPT. Microsoft is one of the key investors in OpenAI, now valued at about $29bn (about R496 bn).
ChatGPT is banned in some public schools in the US, including in New York City and Seattle. Some countries, including Russia, Afghanistan, Iran, Belarus and Venezuela, have outlawed it.
Tipping a virtual cap to humanity, ChatGPT describes itself as augmenting human intelligence, not replacing it.
What is ChatGPT’s potential for harm vs good?
ChatGPT is clear-eyed about its power to do harm and lists its limitations as “misinformation, bias, job displacement, privacy concerns and dependence on technology”.
The chatbot says its existence could lead to a “reduction in human autonomy and decision-making”, noting that these risks are associated with AI in general.
ChatGPT warns users: “While we have safeguards in place, the system may occasionally generate incorrect or misleading information and produce offensive or biased content. It is not intended to give advice.”
Rosman says: “People worry about robots rising up and taking over the world.” But his concern is the “blind deployment of tech”, for example when Amazon developed and tested an AI hiring tool to screen job applications and it favoured men, particularly those with Ivy League qualifications. The process was scrapped. Understanding how to use AI tools and how to run simulations can prevent such outcomes.
Understanding how to use AI tools and how to run simulations can prevent prejudiced outcomes such as the Amazon hiring incident, he says.
“I’ve seen a lot of fearmongering around ChatGPT,” says Roodt, saying these myths need to be debunked. “I’m not immune to some of the concerns, but I think it’s far more positive than negative.
“It is how we choose to use it which ultimately dictates if it is a positive thing, a negative thing or a bit of both.”
For now humans have the last word.
IN ITS OWN WORDS
Describe yourself in clear and funny language?
I am a fancy computer program with a lot of smarts and the ability to hold a conversation. I’m like a robot with a personality, minus the metal body and robot voice (unless you want me to have one, then I can do that too!) Think of me as your virtual bestie who’s always ready to chat and help you out with whatever you need. So, let’s have some fun!
What do you look like?
ChatGPT is a machine learning model and does not have a physical form. It is a computer program that runs on servers.
Write a 100-word poem about love
Love is a rose that blooms in the heart,
A feeling that sets our souls apart.
It’s a fire that burns with passion bright,
A guiding light that shines through the night./
Love is a bond that cannot be broken,
A promise that words cannot have spoken.
It’s a journey that we all must take,
For love is the truest beauty to make./
Love is an ocean that runs deep,
A treasure that we must always keep.
It’s a song that we all must sing,
For love is the sweetest thing./
Love is the stars that light up the sky,
A reason to live and never die.
It’s a gift that we all must share
For love is the most precious rare
Who is the most famous person in the world?
After a preamble about how fame is subjective and measured in different ways, and can be fleeting, ChatGPT replied: “Some examples include figures such as Elon Musk, Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Beyoncé, Cristiano Ronaldo, and many more.”
What is the funniest joke in the world?
Humour is subjective, so what one person finds funny, another person may not. However, here is a classic one-liner that many people find humorous: “Why was the math book sad? Because it had too many problems.”
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