The death of Google? ChatGPT and its effects on the future
Published:
Last updated:
On November 30, 2022, ChatGPT released. A chatbot that gives human-like answers by typing a prompt in a chat-like interface.
ChatGPT. Accessed at chat.openai.com on December 9th 2022.
At first, it seems trivial. We’ve seen dozens of online chatbots, from website store popups to automated call responses. But ChatGPT has captured the interest of people more so than any of these other predecessors. When talking to ChatGPT, these other chatbots seem prehistoric, and users are keen to the leaps in technology the engineers at OpenAI have created.
This bot instantly reminds me of the Hallene Lecture at the University of Illinois earlier this semester. In the lecture, Mike Yao drives the conversation by discussing HCI, human computer interaction. Companies are driven to make their interactions with customers easier and easier. Whether it’s a more intuitive website or captivating ads on the front page, it’s in these companies’ best to have positive human computer interaction to increase sales.
These companies go as far as to have chatbots. Customer is stalling on a page too long? Maybe a popup with a smiling robot asking you what you’re looking for will help. Yao specifically addressed the important role chatbots have and even surveyed participants on how bot appearance and interaction affects decision outcomes. In his lecture, Yao demonstrated that HCI, specifically chatbots, play a significant role in positive human interaction. It’s very likely that digital assistants will only become more assistive as our technology becomes more immersive.
So what about ChatGPT stands out?
Well for starters, ChatGPT is more human-like than any chatbot we’ve seen. Some flagship features are that it remembers conversation, and it’s widely agreed that its Machine Learning model is far more advanced than previous chatting systems. Not only does the bot remember conversation, but it has all the internet up to 2021 indexed. Meaning that it has been fed a lot of data — something very desirable for AI models.
It can answer a wide range of questions, rivaling a search engine like Google
What is the technology inside of it?
On the technical side
ChatGPT is still a prototype, tuned using OpenAI’s GPT-3 Language Model.
GPT-3 or Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3 is a model that uses deep learning to formulate human-like sentences.
Deep learning is a broader part of Machine Learning.
Machine learning is considered a part of Artificial Intelligence
ChatGPT is essentially taught and supervised to interpret and create human-like dialogue.
What does this mean for the future?
In the future, we may use something like ChatGPT instead of Google. Googling something requires a user to self parse for a desired result, and may even require refining a search. ChatGPT drastically cuts down on the time it takes to research as it gives fairly accurate and desired results.
The GPT-3 language model has already been difficult to distinguish between it and an actual person. ChatGPT can also write poems, essays, and songs which will likely transform the way school is taught in younger audiences.
Lastly, because there is no citations or actual website on where ChatGPT is getting its information from, the validity of sources may get worse if it were to become an actual competitor to Google in its current state.
What does it mean for businesses?
Aside from making a delicious brownie recipe, here are some business solutions you can now solve with ChatGPT:
ChatGPT can be used to create personalized marketing messages for potential customers.
ChatGPT can help businesses automate customer service tasks, such as answering frequently asked questions.
ChatGPT can be used to generate high-quality content for businesses’ websites and social media platforms.
ChatGPT can help businesses personalize their e-commerce experiences, making them more engaging and effective for customers.
ChatGPT can assist businesses in conducting market research and gathering customer feedback.
ChatGPT can be used to develop targeted advertising campaigns for specific demographics or interests.
ChatGPT can help businesses generate leads by engaging with potential customers on social media and other online platforms.
ChatGPT can assist with product development by generating ideas and conducting product research.
ChatGPT can be used to create chatbots that can handle a wide range of customer inquiries, freeing up time for other business tasks.
ChatGPT can help businesses improve their search engine optimization (SEO) by generating high-quality content and keywords.
And yes, these responses were generated by ChatGPT.
