The Hindu Editorial Analysis - 8th March 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Why in News?

Recently, OpenAI has introduced a new chatbot called ChatGPT, which is a ‘conversational’ AI and will answer queries just like a human would.

• About:
  • The ChatGPT can answer “follow-up questions”, and can also “admit its mistakes, challenge incorrect premises, and reject inappropriate requests.”
  • It is based on the company’s GPT 3.5 series of language learning models (LLM).
  • GPT stands for Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3 and this is a kind of computer language model that relies on deep learning techniques to produce human-like text based on inputs.
  • The model is trained to predict what will come next, and that’s why one can technically have a ‘conversation’ with ChatGPT.
  • The chatbot was also trained using Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback (RLHF).
• Usage:
  • It can be used in real-world applications such as digital marketing, online content creation, answering customer service queries or as some users have found, even to help debug code.
  • The bot can respond to a large range of questions while imitating human speaking styles.
  • It is being seen as a replacement for the basic emails, party planning lists, CVs, and even college essays and homework.
  • It can also be used to write code, as examples have shown.
• Limitations:
  • The chatbot displayed clear racial and sexist biases, which remains a problem with almost all AI models.
  • The chatbot gives answers which are grammatically correct and read well– though some have pointed out that these lack context and substance, which is largely true.
  • ChatGPT occasionally produces inaccurate information and that its knowledge is restricted to global events that occurred before 2021.

• About:
  • Chatbots, also called chatterbots, is a form of Artificial Intelligence (AI) used in messaging apps.
  • This tool helps add convenience for customers—they are automated programs that interact with customers like a human would and cost little to nothing to engage with.
  • Key examples are chatbots used by businesses in Facebook Messenger, or as virtual assistants, such as Amazon's Alexa.
  • Chatbots tend to operate in one of two ways—either via machine learning or with set guidelines.
  • However, due to advancements in AI technology, chatbots using set guidelines are becoming a historical footnote.
• Types:
• Chatbot with Set Guidelines:
  • It can only respond to a set number of requests and vocabulary and is only as intelligent as its programming code.
  • An example of a limited bot is an automated banking bot that asks the caller some questions to understand what the caller wants to do.
• Machine Learning Chatbot:
  • A chatbot that functions through machine learning have an artificial neural network inspired by the neural nodes of the human brain.
  • The bot is programmed to self-learn as it is introduced to new dialogues and words.
  • In effect, as a chatbot receives new voice or textual dialogues, the number of inquiries that it can reply to and the accuracy of each response it gives increases.
  • Meta (as Facebook's parent company is now known) has a machine learning chatbot that creates a platform for companies to interact with their consumers through the Messenger application.
• Advantages:
  • Chatbots are convenient for providing customer service and support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
  • They also free up phone lines and are far less expensive over the long run than hiring people to perform support.
  • Using AI and natural language processing, chatbots are becoming better at understanding what customers want and providing the help they need.
  • Companies also like chatbots because they can collect data about customer queries, response times, satisfaction, and so on.
• Disadvantages:
  • Even with natural language processing, they may not fully comprehend a customer's input and may provide incoherent answers.
  • Many chatbots are also limited in the scope of queries that they are able to respond to.
  • Chatbots can be expensive to implement and maintain, especially if they must be customized and updated often.
  • The challenges of AI metamorphosing into sentient are far in the future; however, unethical AI perpetuating historical bias and echoing hate speech are the real dangers to watch for.