What is ChatGPT? Is new AI app free, is it safe to use - how does it work?

Fans of artificial intelligence have been treated to a groundbreaking AI project known as ChatGPT.

The mind-blowing app has the ability to converse with you like a human, write poems and solve complicated puzzles.

It is the latest in a long line of AI developments and some say it has the potential to become the most powerful of them all.

But what is ChatGPT, is it free to use and how does it work? Here is everything you need to know.

What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence app which was launched by OpenAI on 30 November 2022.  GPT stands for generative pre-trained transformer.

ChatGPT is effectively an artificial intelligence system which can create human-like text once it is given a prompt.

An example of a prompt can be something as simple as asking for a food recipe or in some cases it can be something more complicated such as creating a personal workout routine.

The chat-bot uses technology known as generative AI which can create original content using machine learning algorithms.

ChatGPT shares many similarities with search engines but it also has the potential to grow into something more powerful.

What has been said about ChatGPT?

Aaron Goldman, chief marketing officer at American advertising giant Mediocean, claimed that it is “inevitable” that we will see apps like ChatGPT in the workplace.

Goldman said: “At the moment it’s unclear if using these bots will put people’s jobs at risk. In the coming months and years, we’ll see businesses codify the use of bots in the workplace both in terms of what they should be used for and what they cannot be used for.”

Open AI also warned that at this early stage it is still possible that ChatGPT can give wrong or misleading information. Open AI explained: “These models were trained on vast amounts of data from the internet written by humans, including conversations, so the responses it provides may sound human-like.

“ChatGPT is not connected to the internet, and it can occasionally produce incorrect answers. It has limited knowledge of world events after 2021 and it may also produce harmful instructions or biased content.”

Chat GPT is limited by the quality and quantity of the data it has been trained on. Therefore if the model is presented with a topic that it hasn’t been trained on it can generate inaccurate results.

How to use ChatGPT

ChatGPT is free to use during its initial research preview and you can sign up for it on the website.

The initial preview stage is designed to get users feedback and help the creators learn about the strengths and weaknesses of their design. However, it is important to know that any conversations on the site are not private at this stage.

Open AI explains: “As part of our commitment to safe and responsible AI, we review conversations to improve our systems and to ensure the content complies with our policies and safety requirements.

“Your conversations may be reviewed by our AI trainers to improve our systems.”