On May 16, the CEO of ChatGPT, Sam Altman, briefed Congress on the pros and cons of artificial intelligence (AI). At the start of the briefing, a recording was played of Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) saying, “We have seen what happens when technology outpaces innovation”. Except the recording wasn’t from Senator Blumenthal, it was an AI voiced-trained software that was trained listening to Senator’s Blumenthal’s floor speeches, the real Senator Blumenthal stated after the recording finished.
Then it was Altman’s turn to share his thoughts on AI, the good and the bad, saying his “biggest fear” is the harm that could be caused could be on a global scale and that regulations are necessary.
“If this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong,” Altman said at one point during the briefing.
Regarding how AI could impact the job market, Altman said this is “very difficult to predict”, eluding to previous technological revolutions and conversations that were made during those times, but also saying he believes the potential for “far greater jobs on the other side of this”. He asked to “think of GPT as a tool and not a creature”, saying there is still a great deal of control over it.
Launched in November 2022 by OpenAI, ChatGPT is designed as an AI language model for use in conversation. Within the software, which can be found here, the user can type in any request and attempt to have a normal conversation with the AI on almost any topic. For example, the user can type, “Can you summarize quantum mechanics in less than 50 words?”
In a matter of seconds, ChatGPT replies with, "Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics that describes the behavior of particles at the smallest scales, where traditional notions of cause and effect break down. It deals with phenomena such as superposition, entanglement, and wave-particle duality, challenging our classical understanding of reality." As you requested, ChatGPT delivered a summary of quantum mechanics in less than 50 words, and in this case, 43 words.
But while ChatGPT can be used as Google for quick bits of information, this also brings to the forefront ethical dilemmas pertaining to writing term papers for a class and even journalism, as a journalist could potentially use this software to write an article or drum up quotes from the ether, as recently noted on Twitter. (Note: this article was not written using ChatGPT or any other AI-based software.)
What impacts will ChatGPT and AI have on our everyday lives in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
Sources: CNN, ZDNet, OpenAI, Twitter
As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
