Labeled by the New York Times as the “hottest technology in the tech industry,” it’s no wonder why Microsoft is planning to invest an additional Ten Billion Dollars into OpenAI’s groundbreaking GPT Chat Bot. But what is GPT technology? Short for “generative pre-trained transformer,” it’s essentially an AI assistant that’s studied everything and will provide answers to any written request you make. The newest version, Chat GPT, has been trained on billions of text samples before 2021 and, based on what you ask, it can transform that into what it predicts to be useful results in text.
More often than not, the prediction is… pretty damn solid. Its results sound like they’ve been written by a human, and the huge variety of requests you can make is what makes this technology so fascinating.
Feedback from users has been mixed. Some think it’s a neat toy, while other believe it’s the biggest bombshell in history, but everyone agrees its damn impressive. To try it out, all you have to do is look up OpenAI, click try, signup for free with an email, and you’re ready to explore.
It’s important to note: Since its release at the end of November, so many people have signed up and are using it every day (millions) the site often pauses for them to scale. Whether or not it’s running at the particular time you want to try is now a game of chance. If it doesn’t work, just have a go later. While at the moment it’s free, soon there will be a paywall. Basically, everyone’s getting their first hit for free.
Assuming you catch it when it’s running, here are just a few examples of ways you can use Chat GPT.
Brainstorming:
Say goodbye to writer’s block. With access to a parameter count of over 170 billion, this is the perfect tool to spin the wheel for potential ideas. Since Chat GPT has absolutely no shame, it will rattle off bizarre idea after bizarre idea if you continue asking. Sometimes there’s brilliance.
Let’s take this impending scenario: What to do for that special someone on Valentine’s Day?
Collaboration is the key to unlocking Chat GPT’s true power. The more specific you are with questions, and the further you engage with its answers, the better. Let’s see what happens when we ask it to explain option three further: A “breakup” themed dinner.
There’s a chance Chat GPT didn’t come up with this idea, but even so, it’s intriguing. Instead of having to manually dig through articles for ideas, you can now just type it up and Chat GPT will fetch information and personally repackage it (copyright on that seems murky, which is one of the concerns about this product in the first place). It’s also kinda funny that Chat GPT realizes this could be hit or miss.
Learning:
Essentially, any question can be answered by Chat GPT (not ones like “what am I wearing?”). You might say, “So what? Google does the exact same thing.” While that may be true, you can’t ask google to explain or summarize things in a simpler or more creative way. Let’s try this very dry question, “what is tort reform?”
Alright, if you skipped that, I don’t blame you. In summary, accurate, but… kinda dense. Now watch what happens when you ask it to rephrase it for a ten-year-old.
So, I wanted to know what Tort Reform was. So what? Sue me. Chat GPT doesn’t care.
Essentially, you can turn this tech into your own personalized teacher. Imagine how much better at math or science kids can be if their teacher is able to explain it in a way that makes sense to them? Like a ten-year-old, like a surfer, like Snoop Dog, like a supervillain, the possibilities are endless.
This can be applied to your daily life to understand literally anything you want to learn more about. And while there may be some thorny ethical issues about replacing teachers and tutors with AI, Google does the same essential thing in a less user-friendly way.
Translating:
This is a language processing model, and if you thought it was just working with English, think again Dorothy…
It might be too early to declare that Google Translate is dunzo, but the number one search engine is probably sweating bullets as Microsoft pumps billions into this.
Coding:
I’ll go out on a limb and say most people don’t know how to code. But we’re looking at a future where the barrier to make computer magic happen might simply be the ability to write a sentence. This code below went on for much longer, but here’s just an idea of what its response looks like.
Many coders have pointed out GPT’s script is often buggy. But if you’re just starting out, this is a great tool to accelerate learning and problem shoot. Also, as more versions come out, it’s possible the sword of coding will be available to all us simpletons.
Writing Tedious Letters:
While deep down you know it’s the right thing to do, writing a thank you letter can be a pain in the neck. If you really can’t muster the will, Chat GPT’s more than happy to bare the burden.
Now, if you really want to show you care and are thankful for a wedding gift, it’s not the worst idea in the world to add that human connection. But sometimes in life, you just need to get the ball rolling however you can, like for a job application.
Venting/Advice:
On a more serious note, life can often deliver a huge plate of misery. It’s therapeutic to just have someone or something to listen to you vent. What if you’re all alone? Chat GPT has zero judgment and will offer you logical advice and support based on swaths of self-help text. It might be just AI, but if you don’t feel like you have a lot of outlets, Chat GPT could be a very practical solution.
Exploring Recipes:
Another useful way to use Chat GPT is to quickly find new recipes. If you want to go ham, you can narrow its parameters to specific ingredients, ask for step-by-step cooking procedures, and even find recipes with a specific calorie or protein count. Like earlier, instead of searching through mountains of articles and cookbooks, Chat GPT will simply lay it out.
There are endless ways to use this technology, so try it out and explore what’s possible. Soon, folks will be paying top dollar for this super assistant. Whether we like it or not, for now, all we can do is try to figure out how this can aid us in our quest to lead more productive and fulfilling lives.