The Popularisation of AI-Powered Applications: Should You Be Afraid of ChatGPT?

Recently causing a storm on multiple social platforms with a waitlist that surpasses the millionth mark, ChatGPT is an app that is hard to ignore. Capable of answering with unfathomable intelligence, what else can ChatGPT, or Artificial Intelligence (AI) in general, bring to individuals and businesses? Should you embrace or not embrace ChatGPT or any of its alternatives today?

Should You Be Afraid of ChatGPT or AI?

What is ChatGPT?

OpenAI has created a popular GPT-3.5 language-generation software called ChatGPT designed to have conversations with people. Its extensive vocabulary and knowledge, powered by large amounts of data and computing techniques, enables ChatGPT to connect words meaningfully as well as understand them in context¹.

The bot remembers the thread of one’s conversations and uses past queries and answers to funnel subsequent responses. It gets its information from the vast amounts of data available online.

Within a few days of its debut, ChatGPT had been used by more than a million people, and many businesses have tried and used ChatGPT. In January, Microsoft and OpenAI announced that they had extended their partnership. Microsoft has invested $10 billion in OpenAI.

A modified version of the ChatGPT technology powers Microsoft's new Bing challenge to Google search. It will eventually power the company's ambition to integrate new AI co-pilot smarts into every aspect of one’s digital life².

In February 2023, OpenAI announced the new $20/month ChatGPT Plus service, which offers priority access to new features and quicker response time³.

However, ChatGPT is still in the research stage, and thus, the information provided by the bot needs to be revalidated instead of consumed as is.

Why should businesses adopt AI applications like ChatGPT today

Businesses can leverage AI-based applications to speed up their productivity in various fields, including marketing and education.

Alex Garcia, the founder of Marketing Examined, which provides growth marketing tactics, tweeted about ways ChatGPT might assist marketers, such as having it create a catchy subject line to increase email open rates, uncover keywords related to a particular topic to improve SEO or generate a meta description for a blog post.

The head of production of Wistia, Chris Lavigne, describes the ChatGPT as an assistive tool, particularly for projects like producing scripts, where he might be experiencing writer's block. Chris Lavigne further explained that ChatGPT gives him a good head start since it can bring him from zero to one. With the help of ChatGPT, he can work more quickly and easily on some tasks⁴.

ChatGPT can be an excellent opportunity for some businesses to leverage the technology strategically. Here are a few examples of how it can be beneficial for companies to use tools like ChatGPT:

Compiling research
Brainstorming ideas
Writing computer code
Automating parts of the sales process
Delivering aftercare services when customers buy products

Providing customised instructions
Streamlining and enhancing processes using automation
Translating the text from one language to another
Smoothing out the customer onboarding process
Increasing customer engagement, leading to improved loyalty and retention⁵

For TRG International, our personal experience with this ChatGPT has been positive. It is capable of helping us reduce workload beyond the customer service and support areas by automating various tasks, such as:

Translate documents into different languages (which, arguably, Google Translate might be able to do better)
Write basic functions based on input and output parameters
Interpret codes into natural language
Outline high-level workflows of ELT tools for non-programmers

And support the learning of programming languages

Nevertheless, despite its potential to improve efficiency, we agree with the experts on one general principle: don't copy and paste anything ChatGPT provides.

Content producers can ask ChatGPT to write a blog article or a social media post about a product, but the content is subjected to review to include deeper insights and ensure accuracy and consistency with the brand and audience.

The chatbot is more of a brainstorming tool than the final draft in these situations⁶.

Why businesses should not adopt AI applications like ChatGPT

Like other chatbots, businesses have to keep in mind that ChatGPT has its baggage:

Questionable information: ChatGPT might respond with plausible-sounding but incorrect information. This can be a challenge to fix since there is currently no source of truth during reinforcement learning. What’s more, when a user submits an unclear query, the current model makes a guess instead of asking for clarification.
Inconsistency: Depending on how the input is phrased or how many times the same prompt is given, the ChatGPT's answer may vary. In certain situations, the model can deny knowing the solution or provide the proper response.
Bias issue: The ChatGPT model can be very verbose, and some terms are overused due to biases in the training data and over-optimisation. For instance, it frequently reiterates that it is a language model developed by OpenAI.
Inappropriate or harmful prompts: Despite the developers' best attempt at ensuring the model dismisses improper requests, it will occasionally follow dangerous instructions. The Moderation API controls harmful content, but false negatives and positives still emerge over time.

On a more positive note, ChatGPT’s drawbacks are being addressed thanks to regular model upgrades and a user-friendly interface. Users' insightful feedback will help identify unique risks and potential mitigations. The training process is continuous, and the AI tool will constantly improve as it learns⁷.

AI is not replacing human

Many believe that because ChatGPT automates numerous tasks that humans currently carry out, it will eventually threaten people's livelihoods. While AI-based chatbots can automate some tasks, they lack many human-like abilities (soft skills), such as emotional intelligence, critical thinking, creativity, and strategic decision-making.

Humans are social animals, and our fundamental, indisputable need is the desire for emotional connection. This connection is made possible by the hormones and emotions in both people interacting chemically and biologically, which is impossible for machines to replicate.

Moreover, AI-based chatbots’ creative process is limited to the data they receive. Thus, it is constrained to the predetermined templates and needs help developing fresh ideas, working methods, or behavioural patterns.

Innovation is built on creativity. The capacity to think outside the box is connected to creativity. Machines are built to "think within the box". That means AI technologies can only operate according to the rules laid out by the given data⁸.

All in all, ChatGPT or other AI applications are not intended to replace human ability and intelligence. The use of artificial intelligence applications in the workplace is growing, and they might replace many of the occupations that people currently hold. Nevertheless, AI’s jobs will be confined to routine chores requiring less complex reasoning.

As the world transitions to a more connected ICT ecosystem, evolving workplace requirements will generate new jobs.

In 2025, AI-powered machines will displace around 85 million jobs, according to World Economic Forum research, but they will also create about 97 million new ones. Therefore, the more essential question we should ask ourselves is: How should we collaborate and incorporate AI to constantly expand our horizons⁹?