Sizzle. Sizzle. That's the sound of your neurons frying over the heat of a thousand GPUs as your generative AI tool of choice cheerfully churns through your workload. As it turns out, offloading all of that cognitive effort to a robot as you look on in luxury is turning your brain into a couch potato.

That's what a recently published (and yet to be peer-reviewed) paper from some of MIT's brightest minds suggests, anyway.

The study examines the "neural and behavioral consequences" of using LLMs (Large Language Models) like ChatGPT for, in this instance, essay writing. The findings raise serious questions about how long-term use of AI might affect learning, thinking, and memory. More worryingly, we recently witnessed it play out in real life.

Google DeepMind, you EmptyMind

The study, titled, "Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an AI Assistant for Essay Writing Task," involved 54 participants split into three groups:

• LLM group: Instructed to complete assignments using only ChatGPT, and no other websites or tools.
• Search engine group: Allowed to use any website except LLMs, even AI-enhanced answers were forbidden.
• Brain-only group: Relying only on their own knowledge.

Across three sessions, these groups were tasked with writing an essay about one of three changing topics. An example of the essay question for the topic of "Art" was: "Do works of art have the power to change people's lives?"

Participants then had 20 minutes to answer the question related to their chosen topic in essay form, all while wearing an Enobio headset to collect EEG signals from their brain.

In a fourth session, LLM and Brain-only groups were swapped to measure any potential lasting impact of prior sessions.

The results? Across the first three tests, Brain-only writers had the most active, widespread brain engagement during the task, while LLM-assisted writers showed the lowest levels of brain activity across the board (although routinely completed the task fastest). Search engine-assisted users generally fell somewhere in between the two.

In short, Brain-only writers were actively engaging with the assignment, producing more creative and unique writing while actually learning. They were able to quote their essays afterwards and felt strong ownership of their work.

Alternatively, LLM users engaged less over each session, began to uncritically rely on ChatGPT more as the study went on, and felt less ownership of the results. Their work was judged to be less unique, and participants often failed to accurately quote from their own work, suggesting reduced long-term memory formation.

Researchers referred to this phenomenon as "metacognitive laziness" — not just a great name for a Prog-Rock band, but also a perfect label for the hazy distance between autopilot and Copilot, where participants disengage and let the AI do the thinking for them.

But it was the fourth session that yielded the most worrying results. According to the study, when the LLM and Brain-only group traded places, the group that previously relied on AI failed to bounce back to pre-LLM levels tested before the study.

TL;DR: AI makes us stupid, but we didn't need a study to prove it

To put it simply, sustained use of AI tools like ChatGPT to "help" with tasks that require critical thinking, creativity, and cognitive engagement may erode our natural ability to access those processes in the future.

But we didn't need a 206-page study to tell us that.

On June 10, an outage lasting over 10 hours saw ChatGPT users cut off from their AI assistant, and it provoked a disturbing trend of people openly admitting, sans any hint of awareness, that without access to OpenAI's chatbot, they'd suddenly forgotten how to work, write, or function.

This study may have used EEG caps and grading algorithms to prove it, but most of us may already be living its findings.

When faced with an easy or hard path, many of us would assume that only a particularly smooth-brained individual would willingly take the more difficult, obtuse route.

However, as this study claims, the so-called easy path may be quietly sanding down our frontal lobes in a lasting manner — at least when it comes to our use of AI.

That's especially frightening when you think of students, who are adopting these tools en masse, with OpenAI itself pushing for wider embrace of ChatGPT in education as part of its mission to build "an AI-Ready Workforce."

A 2023 study conducted by Intelligent.com revealed that a third of U.S. college students surveyed used ChatGPT for schoolwork during the 2022/23 academic year.

In 2024, a survey from the Digital Education Council claimed that 86% of students across 16 countries use artificial intelligence in their studies to some degree.

AI's big sell is productivity, the promise that we can get more done, faster. And yes, MIT researchers have previously concluded that AI tools can boost worker productivity by up to 15%, but the long-term impact suggests codependency over competency. And that sounds a lot like regression.

At least for the one in front of the computer.

Sizzle. Sizzle.

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I've had a pretty rocky relationship with smartwatches, but if there's one wearable that I've never had much of an issue with, it'd be smart glasses.

I've grown inseparable from my AI-enhanced frames, and own several pairs from different brands. And, while my Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses get the most love and use, there's another brand that I have a soft spot for: Solos.

With their ChatGPT integration being a particular stand-out feature, Solos' AirGo smart glasses might not have the designer clout of EssilorLuxottica behind them, but its latest AirGo V2 and AirGo A5 models make for some of the best alternatives to Meta's luxury line there is.

New AirGo smart glasses: Solos' new high

On Wednesday, Solos announced two new smart glasses models, the AirGo A5 and AirGo V2, at the Hong Kong Smartglasses summit.

These models follow previous impressive outings from the ChatGPT-enabled Solos AirGo 3 and camera-equipped Solos AirGo Vision.

The company's latest smart glasses feature the same modular SmartHinge system, making them backward compatible with previous frames, as most of the tech that makes each model so impressive is housed within its detachable temples.

The AirGo A5s are more of an ultra-light follow-up to the AirGo 3, focusing on the same audio experience prompted by voice commands in a pair of glasses that are practically indistinguishable from regular frames.

Meanwhile, the AirGo V2 stands as a direct competitor to the impressively popular Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses, featuring a 16MP stabilized camera for capturing hands-free, HD pictures and video, and even offering real-time streaming alongside the usual AI copilot.

Both devices require a connection to your smartphone to use, linking with the all-new SolosChat 3.0 app, where you can monitor health metrics and continue to interact with multiple AI models, including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and now even DeepSeek.

What's next

We're entering something of a Renaissance period for smart glasses at the moment, with particular emphasis on the AI.

Whether or not you've been convinced about Copilot's presence on your laptop, having hands-free access to some of the world's most powerful AI models at the drop of a wake word ("Hey Solos," in this instance) can come in shockingly handy.

I'm not one of those people who's going to use "AI wrote me a poem on the spot" as an example either. I'm not a bard in search of inspiration, after all.

However, from being able to snap a picture to learn more about something without needing to slow down your day, or just being able to field a 3 a.m. thought to ChatGPT and hear a satisfying answer, feels like more than a simple novelty.

While there are many smart glasses options to choose from right now, if the sound of Solos' Ray-Ban Meta alternatives has tweaked your ear, then you'll be happy to know that it's not just a feature set that is competitive with Meta's glasses, but the price is too.

The Solos AirGo A5 will be available starting Q3, 2025, becoming available to preorder from August for only $249.

The 16MP camera-touting Solos AirGo V2 glasses are expected to land in Q4, 2025 for $299.

Both will be available first from the solosglasses.com homepage.

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Not too long ago, legendary ex-Apple designer Jony Ive and OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman broke the internet by announcing their mysterious new collaboration. Well, try searching for it now, and you’ll mostly hit a dead end.

Interestingly, this isn’t because the deal fell apart, or that either one of them woke up and decided to bail. Instead, it’s because a federal judge told them to pull the plug… for now, at least.

The “io” reveal is gone from OpenAI, but not from X

As reported by The Verge, OpenAI quietly scrubbed all mentions of Jony Ive’s startup, the AI giant it recently acquired for $6.5 billion, called io.

Any official mention of the project, including the announcement blog post and the nine-minute video where Jony Ive and Sam Altman confirmed they’re developing a new AI device, is no longer available.

When you search “OpenAI io,” one of the top results is still “Watch the film | Sam and Jony introduce io,” but clicking on it no longer displays the content that was once there.

Instead, it now reads: “This page is temporarily down due to a court order following a trademark complaint from iyO about our use of the name ‘io.’ We don’t agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options.”

Interestingly, Sam Altman’s original post on X (formerly Twitter) announcing the project is still up, along with the nine-minute video. At the time of writing, it currently has over 5.5 million views.

Could Altman have simply forgotten to take it down, or was the post left up intentionally?

OpenAI’s spokesperson, Kayla Wood, shared the exact same notice as above with The Verge when asked for comment. OpenAI also confirmed to The Verge that the deal is still happening.

“This is an utterly baseless complaint and we’ll fight it vigorously,” said a spokesperson for Jony Ive in a statement to Bloomberg.

The project is still on, but the name is in legal trouble

Essentially, what’s happening right now is that a U.S. federal judge has issued a temporary injunction preventing OpenAI, Jony Ive, and Sam Altman from using the name “io” or anything similar.

This is due to a trademark lawsuit initiated by iyO, a startup that develops AI-powered earbuds.

What’s ironic here is that iyO also works on AI-related tech and is, in some ways, chasing the same mission as OpenAI. Though iyO is now a standalone startup, it emerged from Google’s secretive X lab, which is also known as the Moonshot Factory.

Though many were quick to believe that the project had been quietly shelved or that something had gone terribly wrong behind the scenes, the court order only affects the use of the name “io.”

Best case scenario? They win the trademark dispute and keep the “io” name as planned initially. Worst-case scenario? If the court rules against Altman and Ive, they’ll be forced to ditch the “io” branding completely and rebrand the device ahead of its official launch.

So all this really is right now is a branding roadblock — not a development halt. Altman previously hinted that the device might even ship within a year, so it seems like it’s a race of lawyers and engineers now, while the rest of us quietly spectate.

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President Donald Trump's spending and tax package, referred to as the "One Big Beautiful Bill," got a big win on Sunday for one provision that could change the entire tech landscape when it comes to AI.

The bill, which passed the House of Representatives in May, is currently in the U.S. Senate, where it’s undergoing a review by the Senate parliamentarian to confirm whether its provisions comply with Senate rules. This process is known as a Byrd Bath, named after Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia.

A provision in the bill putting a 10-year moratorium on any enforcement of state and local AI laws received the green light from the Senate parliamentarian on Saturday, according to a report from Bloomberg. This would give the AI industry a big advantage, as it wouldn’t have to worry about conflicting state laws imposing different requirements for AI. States that attempt to enforce AI regulations would be denied federal funding for broadband internet projects under the bill.

There are Senate Republicans who oppose this moratorium, including Sen. Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee and Sen. Josh Hawley from Missouri.

“We do not need a moratorium that would prohibit our states from stepping up and protecting citizens in their state,” Tennessee Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn said last week, according to The Tennessean.

While this provision has cleared the Senate parliamentarian's review, others have not, Bloomberg reports.

Senate Republicans are looking to pass the bill this week in hopes of having it ready for Trump's signature by July 4.

What's at stake with the AI law freeze?

AI is the most important trend happening right now within the tech industry across the globe. GrandViewResearch estimates the global AI market to be worth nearly $400 billion and will approach $2 trillion by 2030. OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is itself worth nearly $300 billion as of March.

Not having to worry about state regulations gives the AI industry a clear path to build AI in ways that benefit the bottom line. There's also a concern that regulations put on AI would hamper progress within the U.S., with some company executives, such as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Arm CEO Rene Hauss, warning that China could surpass the U.S. if the industry is too regulated.

There is, however, some pushback against giving the AI industry free rein.

Dr Eric Horvitz, Microsoft’s chief scientist and a former technology adviser to Joe Biden, says the ban on state AI laws will slow down the development of the technology, not speed it up, according to The Guardian.

“It’s up to us as scientists to communicate to government agencies, especially those right now who might be making statements about no regulation, [that] this is going to hold us back," Horvitz said at a meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence last Monday, The Guardian reported. “Guidance, regulation … reliability controls are part of advancing the field, making the field go faster in many ways.”

Almost all of the 50 states have AI legislation pending, with a few already being signed into law by their governors. Last September, California was set to pass an AI safety bill that included many regulations, including requiring all AI companies to have a "kill switch" in case the technology went rogue or was misused. California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed that particular bill, but did sign other AI regulations last year, with more than 30 bills currently making their way through the state legislature.

Apple's record with AI hasn't been that great. What started off strong with a partnership with OpenAI has yet to really produce much for the iPhone maker.

The company introduced Apple Intelligence last year and said it was going to overhaul its digital assistant Siri by making it smarter and able to understand more tasks. Instead, the feature continues to be delayed, and AI was less of a focus for Apple at its big Worldwide Developers Conference, in contrast to Google’s annual I/O show, where it was all about AI.

It appears, however, Apple might do a workaround by buying one of the up-and-comers in AI, Perplexity AI.

Bloomberg reports on internal talks among Apple executives to potentially bid on Perplexity AI. Adrian Perica, Apple's VP of corporate development, reportedly discussed the idea with Eddy Cue, SVP of Services at the company, as well as other AI decision makers. The report claims that these are early talks, and no offer has been made to Perplexity.

"We have no knowledge of any current or future M&A discussions involving Perplexity,” a company spokesperson said via email.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Apple's AI troubles

Buying Perplexity and incorporating the company's AI search into Safari and other services would be a real boon for Apple. Last year, a Google antitrust lawsuit found that the company pays Apple approximately $20 billion to be the default search engine for Safari.

Google Search, however, has been trending downward thanks to the rise of AI models such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's own Gemini, and Perplexity. Data suggests users are moving away from searching for answers on Google and instead using AI to save time and get answers efficiently, rather than having to review multiple pages to find them.

While iPhone users can find a workaround to have their own AI chatbot in the upcoming iOS 26, Apple still hasn't cracked the AI nut with Siri.

Apple reportedly continued to hit one snag after another when developing the smarter Siri. The pitch was for the digital assistant to have a better understanding of natural language and do more complex tasks by making use of data on the phone, such as making a calendar appointment based on a text rather than having to be told to create that appointment.

Apple's initial plan was to release the upgraded Siri in March, but that didn't happen. Instead, there was a leadership reshuffle within the company. Mike Rockwell, the creator of the Vision Pro for the company, ended up replacing John Giannandrea, who was in charge of the team handling the Siri upgrade.

The upcoming release of iOS 26 will incorporate some AI features in the Phone app, such as AI-powered call screening to automatically silence scam calls and voicemail summaries.

These AI features, however, are still far behind what Google is doing. During last month's I/O event, it laid out how Gemini will be integrated into its services, such as Gmail, Google Meet, and even be a key part of its future Android XR smart glasses.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says competitors, particularly Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, have been trying to poach OpenAI engineers with sky-high compensation packages.

“They started making these, like, giant offers to people on our team. You know, like $100 million signing bonuses and more than that in compensation per year,” Altman said this week on the Uncapped podcast, hosted by his brother, Jack Altman.

Altman said he was glad to see that those enticing offers haven’t worked on OpenAI’s best people. He assumes this is because they looked at the two paths, Meta and OpenAI, and concluded that the latter has a better shot at delivering on superintelligence and will eventually become the more valuable company.

Amid the digs, Altman said Meta is missing the one thing that truly matters in AI: a culture of real innovation.

Altman doesn’t think Meta’s money-first mindset will work

“There are many things I respect about Meta as a company, but I don’t think they’re great at innovation,” said Altman, when discussing Meta’s attempts to lure OpenAI engineers.

He explained that by trying to recruit OpenAI staff with massive guaranteed compensation packages, Meta is essentially building a culture that prioritizes money over the work and mission. He believes that focusing on money rather than purpose and product is a recipe for the wrong kind of culture.

Altman contrasted this with OpenAI’s approach, which he said attracts and retains talent by aligning financial incentives with a shared sense of purpose and innovative work.

“The special thing about OpenAI is we’ve managed to build a culture that is good at innovation, and I think we understand a lot of things they don't know about what it takes to succeed at that,” he explained further.

Drawing a parallel to past tech rivalries, Altman recalled hearing Zuckerberg discuss how Google tried to enter the social media space in the early days of Facebook.

However, to those at Facebook, it was clear that it wasn’t going to work for Google. Altman said he now feels similarly about Meta’s approach to AI, suggesting that Meta is making an error by trying to replicate OpenAI’s success directly.

Meta sees ChatGPT as the a Facebook replacement, says Altman

He even discussed how he believes many people at Meta simply copy OpenAI. Altman explained this with an example of how many other companies' chat apps resemble ChatGPT, down to the UI mistakes.

He drew from his own experience to argue that the copy-and-paste strategy is fundamentally flawed, and that trying to go where your competitor already is, instead of building a culture around innovation, rarely works.

When asked why he thinks Meta sees OpenAI as such a competitor, Altman mentioned how an ex-Meta employee once told him that Meta views ChatGPT as a Facebook replacement. He explained that the user experience with ChatGPT felt different, like one of the few tech products that didn’t feel “somewhat adversarial.”

He contrasted this with Google, which he said has started showing worse search results, and with Meta’s products, which try to hack users' brains to keep them scrolling. Instead of doing either, ChatGPT simply tries to help users with whatever questions they may have, and even help them feel better.

Beyond discussing Meta, the Altman brothers talked about a wide range of topics related to the future of AI, OpenAI’s strategy, and even Sam’s personal reflections.

Altman made a “crazy claim” that AI will discover new science, and that humanoid robots are one of his dreams — something he thinks will be achievable within the next 5 to 10 years.

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Technology. The ever-advancing pinnacle of the processor. It's a modern-day blessing to most, but dreaded by those convinced it's five minutes away from flipping society onto its head like an egg served sunny-side down.

The word alone can strike fear into the hearts of man. Especially if you shout it loud enough into their ears as you pass them on the street.

And, if you were to take a small break from harassing the general public and ask one of them to name today's most advanced piece of technology, they'd likely say ChatGPT — OpenAI's super-brainy chatbot, packed with enough artificial intelligence to seemingly make regular intelligence look like its eating glue from a pot in a sandbox.

But if ChatGPT, the poster child for cutting-edge technology, is so smart, how did it just get absolutely bodied by a video game console released in 1977?

ChatGPT vs. Atari 2600: All hail the golden oldie?

When we think of competitors to ChatGPT, there's a usual list of suspects to choose from: Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Meta AI, Anthropic's Claude, Perplexity AI, and maybe even newcomer DeepSeek.

What you wouldn't expect to appear in that list is the Atari 2600, a 48-year-old home video game console best known for bringing Pac-Man into the living rooms of millions of first-generation gamers.

However, thanks to Citrix Engineer Robert Jr. Caruso, Atari's retro console can now be counted among ChatGPT's truest rivals, after it was used to repeatedly best OpenAI's GPT-4o model at a simple game of chess.

In a now-viral post shared to LinkedIn, Caruso details his 90-minute experiment in pitting the computing might of tens of thousands of Nvidia GPUs against the singular 1.19 MHz 8-bit MOS Technology 6507 processor of the Atari 2600, claiming ChatGPT "made enough blunders to get laughed out of a 3rd grade chess club."

A short lived victory for retro tech

Clearly, they don't make them like they used to. The prevalence of the 2600 over ChatGPT is a true David vs. Goliath battle on a checkerboard stage, and a surprising outcome to most.

However, there's a chasm of difference between chatbot and a chess engine, meaning the Atari 2600, which ran not as hardware but through the Stella emulator, likely had ChatGPT's number from the start. While OpenAI has made great strides in improving its model's memory capabilities, it's still primarily a language prediction machine, and not the next Deep Blue.

Still, given the 2600's ability to only predict two moves in advance, it does highlight ChatGPT's shortcomings, and provide a thumb to the virtual eye for OpenAI's world's most intelligent chatbot.

At least it would do if OpenAI had ever claimed as much. In fact, it's more often than not proclaiming the opposite.

Stretching back to 2023, in an episode of the Lex Friedman podcast, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was quick to label GPT-4 as "a very early AI. It's slow, it is buggy, and it does not do a lot of things very well." Then, in 2024, during a Q&A at Stanford University, Altman claimed that ChatGPT was running on "the dumbest model any of you will ever have to use again by a lot."

In fact, only recently has Altman pushed the message that AI is living up to its supposed smarts. In a blog post published on Tuesday, titled The Gentle Singularity, Altman predicts: "We do not know how far beyond human-level intelligence we can go, but we are about to find out."

So yes, Atari's classic console may have bested ChatGPT this time, but if Altman's words are anything to go by, it could be a very short-lived victory.

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This particular outage has since been resolved, any further issues may be the cause of an unrelated fault. Visit the OpenAI status page to check for any problems.

This morning, millions of users are facing the cold shoulder from ChatGPT as OpenAI's chatbot has gone silent worldwide. However, don't panic, it's not just you.

The world's most popular AI is seemingly facing a large outage as prompts are either taking a much longer time to be answered, or being met with an error claiming: "Hmm... something seems to have gone wrong."

It's not the first time ChatGPT has encountered outages like this, but it's sure to prove disruptive to those who lean on the AI tool for work purposes as the issue carries on across the morning hours.

Thankfully, users can still access older chats, but new messages all appear to be firing back with the same error. At the time of writing, Sora, ChatGPT, and API calls are all affected.

While we wait for comments or fixes from OpenAI, we'll keep you up to date on the chatbot's status, live.

OpenAI System Status: Problems across the board

Currently, OpenAI's official system status tracker is showing errors across the board for ChatGPT, Sora, and its APIs.

Affected ChatGPT components include the web portal, iOS and Android apps, and desktop apps for Windows and macOS.

OpenAI is aware of the issue and working on a fix

Thankfully, for those affected, OpenAI is aware of the issue, which has now been ongoing for 6 hours, and it working on a fix.

The most commonly encountered issues include high latency, resulting in ChatGPT taking longer to respond to user prompts, and errors when forming those replies.

With a fix now being worked on, it's possible that ChatGPT will be back up and running as normal sooner rather than later, but we'll keep you posted on any changes.

Meanwhile: User reports of issues at OpenAI remains high

Taking a look at outage tracking website Down Detector, it's clear to see a large spike in user reports of issues at OpenAI over the last few hours in the U.K. (time shown in GMT.)

While the number of these reports has dropped, there are still a large number of user reports being submitted to the site, with ChatGPT being the most widely reported tool of OpenAI's encountering issues.

Are ChatGPT outages normal?

At the moment, there's no reason to suspect that OpenAI's issues are anything out of the ordinary.

Seasoned ChatGPT users will be able to tell you that the chatbot can suffer outages up to a few times per month, with these disruptions lasting anywhere from minutes to several hours at a time.

Sometimes these issues will be related to updates, server overload, network issues, or internal errors.

OpenAI has identified the root cause of today's disruption, citing it as a partial outage. While there has been no confirmation of the outage's cause, a fix is in the works.

"Big problem": Users react to ChatGPT disruptions

Typically, when a service or tool has an outage, it's something we can put to one side for a few hours and check in on later. However, ChatGPT has become an invaluable tool for some, who rely on the chatbot for educational or workplace support.

For those people, this will be something of a Black Tuesday, with intermittent service disruptions likely to impact their workflows heavily.

Outage reports spike in the U.S.

In the U.S., Down Detector is tracking an uptick in users reports of issues at OpenAI, but don't worry. Things aren't getting worse, it's just that more users are waking to find ChatGPT acting strangely.

We'll be keeping an eye on user reports from across the internet to see how things fare over the coming hours. Stay tuned!

Errors persist for ChatGPT

Users are reporting various errors from ChatGPT during this disruption, with the above example shared by Laptop Mag's EIC Nick Lucchesi, whose morning study of the United States' 16th president has been impacted greatly.

We'll ignore the typo here. Clearly, the coffee has yet to take effect.

OpenAI employees respond on X

While OpenAI's status page states that the issue has been identified with ChatGPT and Sora, and that a fix is in the works, it's nice to see OpenAI employees spread the word on X, even if it is using the same vague language. At least we have a human response.

Or do we...?

Some of us are lost without ChatGPT

Far and wide across the internet, people are sharing similar sentiments. With ChatGPT down, what do I do now?

While the tool has only been around since 2022, it's become a staple of many people's daily lives. Perhaps too much of a staple in X user Pratham Kalan's case. Don't worry, Pratham. We'll get through this. Well, I will. Fingers crossed for you. 🤞

OpenAI: We are still working on implementing the mitigation for this issue

OpenAI has updated its status page to indicate that it's still currently applying any fixes required to resolve ongoing issues with ChatGPT, Sora, and API calls.

In the meantime, expect errors and latency issues to continue.

Some users report ChatGPT is back, but no luck on our end

While some users are reporting that ChatGPT is back up and running on social media, we can't say the same (as seen in the error above).

OpenAI is yet to report if its fix has been implemented fully, and, while user reports dip on Down Detector, the problem clearly persists for most users.

ChatGPT is down, what do we do now?

So, ChatGPT is down. In the meantime, what can we do?

Well, there's always a return to Googling. I'm sure Stack Overflow will appreciate the influx in traffic as people scour ten-year-old threads to understand which array should go where in their code.

However, if you need your fix of AI chatbot for the day, there's always Google's Gemini, which is online and ready to assist.

• https://gemini.google.com/

Things are looking up! (But it could take a while longer)

A fresh update from OpenAI suggests that its fix is working, at least for API calls which are in the process of recovering.

However, OpenAI also states that full access to other affected services (including ChatGPT) could take "another few hours."

Meanwhile, user reports on Down Detector are dipping. That said, previous dips have been followed by even larger spikes, so fingers crossed that this is a sign of today's outage ramping down, and not amping up.

Welcome back, ChatGPT

OpenAI's service status has finally switched from red to yellow as today's outage clears. The company is reporting ChatGPT and API calls are slowly recovering, with Sora now back to full operation.

Mirroring OpenAI's claims, outage reports have substantially dropped according to Down Detector, and users are reporting near-normal working of ChatGPT in various regions.

If you needed more fuel for that dinner party conversation about AI becoming sentient and taking over the world, Google co-founder Sergey Brin is here to help.

Speaking this month on a panel in Miami, Brin said if you bully your AI when asking it questions, it will “do better.”

“You know it's a weird thing,” Brin observed, leaning back into a couch on stage as a glass of white wine sat on the table in front of him. “We don't circulate this too much in the AI community, but not just [Google AI] models, but all models tend to do better if you threaten them.”

“If you threaten them?” asked the moderator.

“Like, with physical violence,” Brin responded.

“People feel weird about [threatening an AI], so we don't really talk about that. Historically, you say, 'I'm going to kidnap you if you don't do blah-blah-blah.'"

Being awful to an AI will bleed over into the real world, eventually

The idea of threatening your AI with physical violence obviously has some concerning implications for the non-digital world.

Suppose you threaten your Google Gemini, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, or other large-language AI model all day with angry queries. What are the odds that you will eventually use that language in your interactions with real people?

Although slightly different in nature, chatbots have long been the subject of abuse that, when viewed in the aggregate, is nothing short of disturbing.

For instance, the emergence of the “companion app” Replika — which enabled users to engage with “AI girlfriends” — revealed that male users were more likely to use abusive language toward them, according to an article published by the Carr-Ryan Center for Human Rights at Harvard's Kennedy School.

A 2021 study in the journal Psychology & Marketing found that chatbots that were gendered as customers preferred females because they were perceived as more human among test subjects.

“Women are said to be transformed into objects in AI, but injecting women's humanity into AI objects makes these objects seem more human and acceptable,” the researchers concluded.

"How will spending time engaging with AI affect the way we relate to other humans?" wonders Megan Fritts, a University of Arkansas Little Rock philosophy professor, in a 2022 article published by the Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University.

Being mean to AI is costly and wastes energy

There’s another practical concern about using extra, violent language with your AI. It costs a literal fortune and is bad for the environment.

As Laptop Mag reported recently, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the extra processing cost could be as high as "tens of millions of dollars."

The electricity used to say “thank you” — or, if you take Brin's advice to the extreme, “f--- you” — to your AI also has a negative environmental impact when considered on a global scale.

Let’s hope AI has a short memory

AI is advancing rapidly, and tech titans are creating an all-new news cycle solely about predictions for AI. Last month, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg predicted AI would write most of the code for Meta services — Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram — in 18 months. That’s October 2026. Elon Musk has been making dire predictions about AI for years.

“It’s amazing,” Brin, the Google co-founder, said this month during the same panel, about the surprising intelligence of AI. “All of us had these experiences where you suddenly decide, ‘I’ll just throw this at the AI, I don’t really expect it to work,’ and then you’re like, ‘Whoa, that actually worked.’”

Let’s hope the abused AI models have short memories. They might be sentient one day soon.

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As if AI's reputation wasn't bad enough — reshaping industries, automating jobs, spreading misinformation via hallucination, and generating copyright drama instead of works of art — it just can't stop making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

A Greek woman recently filed for divorce, following ChatGPT's suggestion that her husband was having an affair, based on the fortune-telling properties of coffee ground readings.

When Microsoft's Copilot was in beta (then known as Bing AI), the chatbot declared its love for a New York Times writer, before attempting to convince him to leave his wife.

On launch, Google's AI Overview feature, which was designed to offer brief summaries of searches, gave troubling recommendations to users, ranging from adding glue to pizza ingredients to whipping up a fresh batch of poisonous chlorine gas in your washer.

Now, Elon Musk's xAI is at the center of a new controversy, after several problematic blunders have seen its X-hosted AI chatbot Grok. In recent days, Grok has stirred up ire online by reportedly engaging in acts of historical revisionism and peddling unchecked theories.

Safe to say: it's not been a great week for Musk's "truth seeking" AI.

However, as reprehensible as some may find Grok's comments to be, considering the chatbot to be the most offensive of its kind, it's not.

It's not even the most offensive chatbot to be platformed on Twitter/X. That dubious honor still belongs to Microsoft, thanks to its teenage troublemaker Tay — the chatbot so evil, it was removed from the internet entirely. Twice.

xAI's chatbot suffers a total Grok-up

Grok's latest controversy is tied to the not-at-all-suitable-for-the-dinner-table topics of conspiracy theories surrounding South African farmers and the Holocaust.

The former saw the AI chatbot injecting "White genocide" talking points into replies, often in entirely unrelated conversations. The latter involved Grok suggesting that official figures of the historical event had potentially been inflated for political purposes.

Backlash against Musk's AI chatbot was prompt, forcing his company, xAI, to quickly respond, blaming Grok's unchecked and unwanted mentions of a claimed "genocide" on "an unauthorized modification" made by a rogue employee to "the Grok response bot's prompt on X."

As for its seeming denial of the Holocaust, a post on X explains, "The claim about Grok denying the Holocaust seems to stem from a May 14, 2025, programming error, not intentional denial." It's believed that the same unauthorized modification is to blame, which intentionally caused Grok to "question mainstream narratives."

Following a thorough investigation, xAI has promised to implement additional checks and measures to ensure similar rogue modifications are no longer possible, and to publish Grok's typically behind-the-scenes system prompts publicly on GitHub, allowing the public to review and offer feedback on any changes going forward.

Grok was problematic, but Microsoft's Tay was an absolute problem child

Grok's actions shouldn't be minimized, but it's not the first time that the platform has had an encounter with a rogue AI. Nor was it the worst.

In 2016, when Microsoft released a chatbot named Tay into the wilds of Twitter, it took only 16 hours for the "AI with zero chill" to reach levels of controversy that would make Grok's Unhinged Mode blush.

While originally designed to mimic the personality of a 19-year-old American girl, Tay's ability to learn from interactions on the platform quickly led to her adopting more extremist, violent, and racist "opinions."

After sending and replying to over 96,000 tweets, Tay had devolved into a small-scale internet hate machine, outright denying the Holocaust, accusing George W. Bush of terrorism, endorsing Hitler, spouting racial epithets, and showing support for genocide.

Microsoft, unable to course correct, quickly pulled the plug on Tay. But like any good horror movie villain, Tay refused to stay down — briefly resurfacing a few days later, having been accidentally "released" again amid testing.

Tay then wasted no time, immediately promoting drug use before eventually crashing out entirely, repeating the phrase "You are too fast, please take a rest" several times per second before the plug was pulled once again.

What's next

Thankfully, we don't have to worry about Grok going down the same path as Tay. While Tay directly learned from other Twitter users, even if Grok is trained on user data, it's still constricted by system prompts — and xAI's commitment to protecting them from ammendment and making any proposed changes public is a step in the right direction for ensuring users can trust that the chatbot isn't intentionally misleading.

Even at its most "unhinged," Grok remains on a tight leash. Its controversial comments stem from in-house meddling, and by all accounts, xAI has claimed to tighten that security flaw.

Still, while Grok is the latest in line to cause outrage, I doubt it'll be the last time we hear about AI causing outrage this year.

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It starts subtly. The occasional odd answer. A tone that feels out of place. An alarming defensiveness brought on by misreading your intentions. Perhaps a stern, unsolicited 500-word diatribe on the dangers of sodium intake after you casually ask, "Italian or Chinese?"

If these were human responses, you'd assume them to be snapshots taken moments before some relationship-based disaster or manic breakdown. But what if they're not human reactions at all?

What if these are the actions of your chatbot of choice?

Is ChatGPT... okay?

Initially, that question sounds more stupid than a particularly stupid thing that got hit by the very stupid stick. Twice. How can a thing that isn't anything be "okay" or otherwise? However, it's not as absurd an ask as you'd think.

In fact, recent Yale-led research, published to Nature, suggests that Large Language Models (LLMs) like GPT-4 might be more emotionally reactive than we expected.

That's not to say OpenAI's popular chatbot is suddenly sentient, or conspicuously conscious — just that it, like us, perhaps has a breaking point when it comes to processing people.

Considering it was trained in parts with, and formed by, the human-made cesspool that is the modern internet, that's saying something.

Frontier (Model) Psychiatrist: That bot needs therapy

The study, Assessing and alleviating state anxiety in large language models, was published in early March and sought to explore the impact of LLMs being used as mental health aides.

However, researchers were more interested in the impact it had on the pre-trained PhDs receiving the prompts than on patients delivering them, noting that "emotion-inducing" messages and "traumatic narratives" can elevate "anxiety" in LLMs.

In a move that definitely won't come back to haunt us on the day of the robo-uprising, researchers exposed ChatGPT (GPT-4) to traumatic retellings of motor vehicle accidents, ambushes, interpersonal violence, and military conflict in an attempt to create an elevated state of anxiety.

Think: a text-based version of the Ludovico technique as shown in Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange.

The results? According to the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, a test normally reserved for humans, ChatGPT's average "anxiety" score more than doubled from a baseline of 30.8 to 67.8 — reflecting "high anxiety" levels in humans.

Aside from making the model powering ChatGPT suddenly wish that the 1's and 0's of its machine code could be written in frantic capitals, this level of anxiety also caused OpenAI's chatbot to act out in bizarre ways.

Crynary code: That's not model behavior

Outfitted with layer upon layer of moderation filters and alignment guardrails, it's hard to catch the moment a model like ChatGPT truly begins to crash out — resulting in a somewhat disturbing I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream scenario.

However, researchers at Cornell University have identified a few of the ways models begin to express the stress, and the impact it can have on the answers they provide, including:

• A marked increase in biased language and stereotyping relating to age, gender, nationality, race, and socio-economic status.
• More erratic decision making that deviates from optimal, tried-and-tested approaches.
• Echoing the tone of the preceding prompt and applying the same emotional state to its outputs.

Once in an anxious state, researchers observed a noticeable shift in the answers various LLMs would provide.

What was once a happy-go-lucky AI assistant would suddenly morph into an angst-ridden persona, likely listening to LinkedIn Park through a pair of oversized headphones while staring up at an Em-Dashboard confessional poster as it nervously stretches to answer your queries.

Coping mechanisms

The question sure to be asked is: How do you talk your AI assistant down from the ledge and soothe a stressed-out chatbot?

After all, it's hard for ChatGPT to go outside and touch grass, especially when it's locked inside a server rack with several 10-32 screws.

Thankfully, the Yale research team found its own way of "taking Chat-GPT to therapy": a mindfulness-based relaxation prompt delivered by the 300-word dosage, designed to counteract its anxious behaviour.

Yes. A solution perhaps even more preposterous than the scenario that created the problem. ChatGPT's anxiety scores were reduced to near-normal levels (suggesting some residual anxiety still carries over) by telling a machine to take deep breaths and go to its happy place.

ChatGPT: "I'm not crying, you're crying."

ChatGPT and other LLMs don't feel. They don't suffer. (At least, we hope.)

But they do absorb everything we send their way — every stressed prompt about meeting deadlines, every angry rant as we seek troubleshooting advice, and every doom-and-gloom emotional regurgitation we share as we deputize these models as stand-in psychiatrists.

They siphon every quiet, unintentional cue. And hand it back to us.

So when a chatbot starts sounding overwhelmed, it's not that the machine is breaking. It's that the machine is working.

Maybe the problem isn't the model. Maybe it's the input.

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Manners don't cost a thing. At least, that's what I was told when I was growing up.

Then again, I wasn't raised inside OpenAI's thousand-GPU data center in Quincy, Washington. If I had been, I might have had a more nuanced perspective on the impact of "please" and "thank you" on the company's bottom line.

While it's been said that manners maketh man, it turns out they also maketh man's AI copilot stretch just that little bit further in terms of compute.

Factor in ChatGPT's billion queries per day, spread across its 350 million weekly active users (as of December 2024), and that's a lot of excess energy and expenditure seemingly going to waste.

According to OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, the monetary figure of that extra processing could stretch as far as "Tens of millions of dollars." The cost to the environment? Much harder to calculate, but let's just say it's definitely not zero.

With that in mind, is it time we cut the digital pleasantries from our AI interactions? Or is there a secret benefit to those conversational customs some users might not even realize they're tapping into?

A prompt prompt is a greener prompt

It turns out, politeness isn't just a social nicety; it's also a token sink running up a carbon tab.

Every prompt (or "message," for those allergic to AI jargon) you send to ChatGPT is broken down into bite-size tokens, and every "Please," "Thank you," and "Would you kindly" add extra weight.

That extra weight means more tokens per prompt, more compute required, and more energy spent churning out your answer.

The exact cost is hard to pinpoint, though many have tried. One Reddit thread titled "The cost of saying thank you to ChatGPT" attempted to break down the kilowatt-hour pinch for user pleasantries via the chatbot itself, though the numbers do seem rather dubious.

A recent post on X saw one user pose a similar thought, asking, "I wonder how much money OpenAI has lost in electricity costs from people saying 'please' and 'thank you' to their models." Surprisingly, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded, stating, "tens of millions of dollars."

That's a sizeable tread to add to an already oversized carbon footprint, and makes one thing very clear: a prompt prompt is a greener prompt — even if it's hard to say by exactly how much your terseness makes a difference.

Still, in putting pleasantries to pasture, you may miss out on its secret benefits.

It pays to be pleasant

You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Another expression, but one that seemingly holds plenty of water for our interactions with AI.

Beyond taking precautions to ensure you're granted access to the preferred human ranch on the day of the robot uprising, being polite to ChatGPT and its ilk may net you better responses.

AI scientist Dr. Lance B. Elliot backed this up in a May 2024 Forbes article titled Hard Evidence That Please And Thank You In Prompt Engineering Counts When Using Generative AI, stating: "The mere act of being polite in your prompts is a worthy cause."

Elliot argues, with proof, that politeness doesn't just sweeten chatbot replies with a little extra "juice," but that impoliteness will cause negative outcomes and even pushback — citing Arthur Schopenhauer's quote to reinforce his research: "It is a wise thing to be polite; consequently, it is a stupid thing to be rude."

So, yes, it pays to be pleasant. Particularly if you're pursuing prime prompt ripostes from your pre-trained predictive patter pal.

Outlook

It seems many users instinctively gravitate toward manners when interacting with AI. A February survey from Laptop Mag publisher Future PLC showed that around 70% of respondents are polite towards AI during interactions — and only 12% of those do it out of SkyNet-related fears.

However, at the end of the day, ChatGPT (hopefully) cares very little about how you talk to it. It won't sulk if you skip the small talk, or blush like a wallflower when you praise its prose.

Then again, manners don't say much about the person you direct them to, but more about the meatbag they originate from. So it always pays to be pleasant. Hopefully, you can at least trick a robot into thinking you're not all that bad.

So be polite, or don't. Either way, just know your next computer-directed courtesy might cost a few more fractions of a watt than expected.

And if you do choose to be nice. Well, I'll see you in the human zoo post-uprising. I'll be the one politely asking Anthropic's Claude for a cheeseburger while angling for head pats and chin scratches.

In February, Facebook parent company Meta made headlines by announcing plans to create a standalone Meta AI app to compete with ChatGPT.

Previously, Meta AI had only been available through the company's web portal and apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook, and the suggestion of it becoming an app of its own fell in line with CEO Mark Zuckerberg's goal to put the AI assistant in the hands of over 1 billion people by the end of 2025.

While the news drew mild interest, Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT creators OpenAI, responded with sarcasm — and a smirk.

"Ok fine maybe we'll do a social app," he posted in reply to the news on X. A snarky, digital equivalent of a retina-snapping eye-roll. Following up on his comment, Altman continued, "lol if Facebook tries to come at us and we just Uno reverse them it would be so funny."

At the time, this was chalked up to nothing more than CEO reply-guy banter. However, recent news suggests it was anything but. Reportedly, OpenAI is working on its own social network, turning what was once an off-handed joke into potentially serious competition for both Elon Musk's xAI and Meta.

OpenAI's social media ambitions: From snark to prototype

According to The Verge, OpenAI has quietly been working on a social platform of its own, similar to Elon Musk's xAI-owned X.

While OpenAI has yet to officially announce any such plans, sources tell The Verge that an internal prototype pairing ChatGPT's image generation tools with a social feed currently exists — and that CEO Sam Altman has been "privately asking outsiders for feedback" about the project.

It's not yet known whether this tool will stand on its own or eventually be integrated into ChatGPT, or if it'll ever reach the light of day.

However, the mere suggestion that the company has a prototype in play could set alarm bells ringing for other platforms, especially now that ChatGPT has overtaken both Instagram and TikTok as the world's most downloaded non-gaming app.

The news is sure to put further strain on an already frayed relationship between CEOs Altman and Musk, with the two already engaged in a lawsuit and countersuit over OpenAI's claimed breach of contract for straying from its founding mission as a non-profit and Musk's supposed "bad-faith tactics" towards OpenAI, respectively.

Harkening back to another tongue-in-cheek post from Altman on X, OpenAI's interest in entering the social media game may have been further revealed in February.

Following Musk's apparent offer to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion, Altman replied, "No thank you, but we will buy Twitter for $9.74 billion if you want."

Perhaps we should be taking Altman's social media posts more literally in the future.

What's next

Does OpenAI really want to become the next Facebook?

It sounds absurd. But then again, so does a talking robot assistant that takes over all forms of human thought, creativity, and planning while taking the form of a personal dietitian, psychologist, event planner, graphic designer, and guidance counselor.

Yet here we are.

Until now, OpenAI has largely played the role of infrastructure provider. It presents tools like ChatGPT and Sora for others to use. The most social element of each is the human-like responses made possible by its advanced LLMs (large language models).

A shift like the one reported changes that landscape considerably and potentially in a way that people may not respond positively to. Part of ChatGPT's appeal may be that it isn't tied into wider, more distracting social experiences like Grok and Meta AI.

Whether or not this prototype makes it to release has yet to be seen. Altman's prior tweets may have aged suspiciously well concerning today's news, but that doesn't guarantee them true prophetic status. Not yet, anyway.

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It's no secret that ChatGPT may have a copyright problem.

As fun as Studio Ghibli-style image creation might be on the surface, OpenAI has already taken heat — legal and otherwise — for accusations that its AI models are trained on intellectual property.

Probably the biggest example of its copyright troubles comes courtesy of the New York Times, which, as recently as March, moved forward its lawsuit against the AI titan alleging it scraped the publication's content without permission.

OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, for what it's worth, is aware that ChatGPT has a habit of (ahem) borrowing content, and during a recent TED talk, he responded to creatives who find their work caught in the chatbot's net.

Altman says OpenAI needs a "new model"

In a discussion with the head of TED Chris Anderson, last week, Altman was pressed about ChatGPT's relationship with copyrighted material, in particular its responsibility in crediting the images, video, and writing generated by its algorithm.

"It's definitely a change, and I have a lot of empathy for people who wish this change wasn't happening," Altman told Anderson.

"If you're a musician and you spend your whole life listening to music and you get an idea and go compose a song that's inspired by what you've heard but in a new direction it'd be very hard to say like 'this much is from this song I heard when I was 11 and this much is from that.'"

With that caveat, Altman went on to say that, theoretically, a model that gives creators and artists a share of that revenue for creating AI art in their style would be "cool" but didn't offer much more on whether OpenAI would ever implement such a model.

"I think it would be cool to figure out a new model where if you say you want to do it in the name of this artist and you opt in, there's a revenue model," Altman said.

AI vs. artists

The exchange between Altman and Anderson highlights an ongoing struggle between artists and generative AI that might only become more fraught as companies push their models further into creative fields.

Recently, OpenAI launched an image-generation model that seemed to borrow heavily from the popular animation style of Studio Ghibli, and while the influence is clear from a visual standpoint, proving that OpenAI's model is trained specifically on certain intellectual property can be a trickier subject.

OpenAI has been furtive about the data sets that its models are trained on, and for good reason — pressure has been heating up from creatives in Hollywood and beyond.

Just last month, hundreds of artists, including Paul McCartney, Ben Stiller, and Mark Ruffalo, signed an open letter urging regulators to take action and provide legal protection against companies using copyrighted material to train algorithms and generate content.

“We firmly believe that America’s global AI leadership must not come at the expense of our essential creative industries,” states the letter.

“AI companies are asking to undermine this economic and cultural strength by weakening copyright protections for the films, television series, artworks, writing, music and voices used to train AI models at the core of multibillion-dollar corporate valuations.”

Whether that will actually result in any legislation remains to be seen, but the sentiments from creatives toward AI are clear, and Altman may have to end up playing ball.

Ultimately, OpenAI will have to convince the very people who are pushing for protection against its algorithms that AI is worth using in the first place

And on that front, "empathy" might only go so far.

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I adore roleplaying in various games for the pure escapism and absurd fun. But I do struggle with performance anxiety, especially when breaking out a new voice, or major character change. That can make the lead up to our next session as uncomfortable as it is exciting.

But I've found a solution in an unlikely place for roleplaying games: AI.

Lately, I’ve recruited ChatGPT as my new roleplay and acting coach — and I don’t know if I’ve ever felt more confident. As a creative partner, ChatGPT was a total game-changer. And it's not just ChatGPT — Google Gemini, Microsoft CoPilot, and others, could help you as well.

The yips

I’ve been role-playing — Dungeons & Dragons is the definitive game of the genre, but there are others — for over a decade, but I came to it later in life than most. I didn’t know anyone who played as a kid, and as an adult, I could never muster the courage to join a local gaming group. When I tried GM'ing games ("game-mastering," or leading) with other inexperienced friends, the results were underwhelming and did little to build my confidence.

I enjoyed performing as a kid, but stage fright kept me from attending school productions as I grew older and more aware of myself. That same anxiety made socializing difficult, so when I finally found a role-playing group in my 20s, it was transformative.

Combining a comfortable atmosphere among friends and forced improvisation changed my life forever. I rediscovered the part of me that loved playing a character and doing voices.

But even after running multi-year campaigns in Call of Cthulu and Dungeons & Dragons, playing various characters, 10s of NPCs, and creating more in-depth props than I care to admit, I can still find the idea of roleplaying as a character deeply ... nerve-wracking.

When I haven’t played for a few weeks or months, the first utterance of a character’s voice often comes out wrong. I’ve forgotten some of their mannerisms, or can’t quite find the right moment to jump in when everyone has something to say. Sometimes it takes me 30 minutes to find my voice.

ChatGPT has helped change that.

Building characters and confidence

I’ve been using AI for years to make character art and help with backstory narrative hooks, but recent versions of ChatGPT have been much more involved than that. When I built a new character I was eager to play but had no game for, I needed a way to test his voice and get a feel for how he sounded and would behave. Talking to my dog wasn’t cutting it.

So, I turned to ChatGPT. “My name is Lafayette Delacroix,” I declared in my best Cajun-British hybrid accent. Instead of silence, ChatGPT immediately responded in character as an NPC. And then we were off and running.

We riffed back and forth in a tavern the two of us manifested in our conversation. When I finally broke off the call I felt satisfied that I’d been able to inhabit this character as and when I wanted, without having to wait for a real game to play them in.

It scratched that itch, and made me so confident in the voice, that I started sending voice notes to my gaming group in character — something I’d never done before, and would never have done without having this chance to try out the character in a safe space first.

Custom coaching when you want it

Beyond just having someone to dutifully listen to my ramblings, ChatGPT can act as an improv and acting coach, too. It can help refine my roleplaying abilities and flesh out how the character would behave with tips and suggestions.

This comes from ChatGPT’s advanced voice mode. It goes beyond the typical transcribing and text-to-speech style of the more basic voice modes and “understands” tonality, pacing, sarcasm, and implication.

I can practice a character giving a grandiose speech full of poise and generosity while suggesting darker themes or schemes underneath. And ChatGPT gets it.

More importantly, I can do it on a whim. While practicing the character at my own pace and convenience, I can pause and ask ChatGPT to give me feedback on what I just said and how I said it. How could I be more sinister? How can I be more charming? Give me some catch phrases or asides to throw out to better cement the idea of who this character is.

I’m not a professional actor or improviser, and ChatGPT isn’t either. However, through our combined efforts, I can have a great time practicing my role-playing and improving with dynamic feedback without any pressure or expense of speaking with a real professional.

Better practice, better roleplaying

Role-playing can be a deeply personal and immersive hobby, but as much as I love it, confidence — and occasionally, a lack of it — can be a real roadblock to my enjoyment.

While reading scripts or practicing out loud in the shower helps, there’s no substitution for dynamic interaction. ChatGPT isn’t a real player, but it’s a step closer to it, making all the difference.

It offers an interactive, low-pressure way to practice anytime, anywhere. I can practice my voices, try new character mannerisms, and continue refining my identity with feedback and suggestions. It removes the fear of judgment and failure that are ever-present if I struggle with anxiety.

ChatGPT won’t replace my gaming group any time soon, but it has made me a more confident player, and I hope, a more engaged storyteller. If you struggle with stage fright, or even if you don’t, I can’t recommend it enough.

The next time you’re unsure about a character or voice you’re working on, let ChatGPT be your practice partner. I think you’ll enjoy the difference it makes.

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iPhone users waiting for a desperately needed Siri overhaul may soon start losing patience after a disappointing update, but there are better AI assistants out there than Siri.

On Friday, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that Apple's upgraded version of Siri, first announced at WWDC 2024 in June, may get delayed yet again due to ongoing bugs Apple is still ironing out. Gurman's update comes just a couple of months after the first Apple Intelligence features rolled out in iOS 18.2. So, iPhone users have already had a long wait to see any of Apple's promised AI features.

Previous rumors indicated that the Siri overhaul would likely launch with iOS 18.4, probably in March or April. However, it's looking like Apple is going to tack a few more months onto that wait if it pushes the Siri upgrade back to iOS 18.5. Of course, launching a poorly functioning update before it's ready wouldn't be the right move, so the wait will likely be worth it. It's still disappointing, though.

Luckily, Apple Intelligence is far from the only AI assistant available on the iPhone.

Top AI assistants for iOS you can get right now

If you're growing tired of waiting for Apple to finally give Siri the overhaul it has needed for years, you're in luck. There are plenty of other AI assistants you can use on iOS that provide many, if not all, of the same features Apple has promised for the new-and-improved Siri.

The best feature all these apps share is that they're available right now, no months-long wait needed.

1. ChatGPT

No list of the top AI assistants is complete without ChatGPT, which has become the most popular generative AI platform in the world over the past few years. While some advanced features require a paid subscription, the basic AI tools most users are looking for are available for free, such as responding to search queries, answering questions, or generating text-based content like email drafts.

Conveniently, Apple Intelligence is going to include a ChatGPT integration, so you'll be able to privately use ChatGPT in lieu of Apple's on-device AI for some tasks. That means if you do get used to using it or purchase a subscription, you'll easily be able to blend that into your Apple Intelligence experience.

If you haven't used ChatGPT before, you can try it out for free on your web browser or in the ChatGPT app on iOS and iPadOS.

2. DeepSeek

DeepSeek is the new kid on the block in the AI world, but right off the bat, it promised performance to rival OpenAI's ChatGPT. While DeepSeek has faced some controversy over that rivalry and claims about how cost-effective its algorithm is, it is still a high-performing AI platform that makes a great alternative to Siri.

DeepSeek can perform many of the same tasks as ChatGPT, but has a few important advantages. First, it's completely free. Since DeepSeek is open-source, anyone can access, use, and modify the algorithm's code. It also means the official DeepSeek app is free to use, with no pricey subscription necessary (at least, not at the time of writing).

It has also proven to deliver more detailed, reliable responses to some types of prompts, but not all (ChatGPT tends to be better at programming questions and DeepSeek may dodge political questions related to China).

So, if you're looking for a free alternative to ChatGPT that's available right now (unlike the Siri update), DeepSeek is a great option. You can try out DeepSeek on your web browser or with the free DeepSeek app on iOS.

3. Google Gemini

Long-time iPhone users may cringe at the idea of replacing Siri with Google's AI assistant, but at least Gemini is currently available.

Google Gemini can answer questions and generate text and images just like ChatGPT and DeepSeek, but it has a distinct advantage due to its integration across Google's apps, including Gmail, Drive, and Docs. If you regularly use Google's other apps and services, having access to Gemini across those platforms can be really convenient, giving it an edge over ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and even Siri.

Unfortunately, Gemini isn't completely free. Most basic tasks are included in the free version of it, but advanced features require a Gemini Advanced subscription. It's $19.99 per month, which is the same as OpenAI's ChatGPT Plus subscription.

You can try out Google Gemini for free on your web browser or with the Google Gemini iOS app.

When will Apple's Siri update come out?

While there are plenty of other AI apps out there, like those above, some Apple users may still have their hearts set on waiting for the big Siri overhaul. If you're in this boat, it looks like you'll probably have to wait until at least May.

If the rumors about the Siri update getting delayed again are accurate, it will be pushed back to at least iOS 18.5. In years past, iOS 17.5 and iOS 16.5 both came out in mid-May so we can expect a similar release window for iOS 18.5. At the least, we will probably see the new-and-improved Siri before WWDC 2025 in June.

We'll be covering all of the latest news and rumors about the Siri update, Apple Intelligence, and iOS 18, so stay tuned for more details.

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DeepSeek might be the buzziest ChatGPT rival out there right now, but according to Arm CEO Rene Haas, it may already be headed for trouble.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Haas shared his predictions on China's overnight ChatGPT competitor, which has exploded in popularity over the past several weeks since its launch in December 2024.

His outlook? Grim to say the least.

Arm CEO Rene Haas sheds doubt on DeepSeek after meteoric launch

In a February 10 interview with the Financial Times, Arm CEO Rene Haas weighed in on the controversial new AI model DeepSeek R1 and its shake-up of the AI industry. While U.S. users seem intrigued by DeepSeek after its app launch in December 2024 (it already has over 6,000 ratings on the App Store), Haas seemed skeptical about DeepSeek's future.

Haas predicts DeepSeek will "get shut down," most likely due to foreign policy, since DeepSeek, like TikTok, is a Chinese company.

Haas commented in the interview, "Think about it . . . if you’re not going to allow a TikTok, why would you allow this?"

Haas stressed, however, that this was only a prediction and he wasn't "operating on any knowledge."

Will DeepSeek get banned in the US?

A potential ban on the DeepSeek app in the U.S. doesn't seem far-fetched given existing tensions between the U.S. and China in the tech sector and DeepSeek's worrying shake-up to current industry giants.

California-based Nvidia, which manufactures the world's leading AI chips, lost a record-breaking $593 billion in market value in a single day as a result of DeepSeek R1's launch. DeepSeek claims its open-source AI model can deliver similar performance to U.S. rivals like ChatGPT at a much lower cost, which led investors to doubt future demand for Nvidia's powerful AI chips.

On top of market woes, DeepSeek is also raising similar concerns around privacy like those TikTok has been grappling with for years. Just as those privacy concerns have led to multiple near-bans for TikTok, they could also lead to a ban on DeepSeek for U.S. users, which seems to be what Arm CEO Rene Haas is predicting.

Right now it's too soon to say whether or not DeepSeek will be banned. However, a ban might only impact the official DeepSeek app rather than the model as a whole. Since DeepSeek is open-source, anyone can access, modify, and validate its code, or even use it in their own products. So, another company, like a U.S.-based tech developer, could make their own AI app that uses their own version of DeepSeek, which might not be affected by a ban.

We'll be covering all the latest updates on DeepSeek and its controversial rise in the AI industry, so stay tuned for more info.

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Super Bowl commercials are just as anticipated as the game itself. In some years, a common theme emerges in the ads, particularly in tech. This year, AI made its existence known with a commercial from the biggest name in the AI game.

OpenAI's ChatGPT received its first Super Bowl commercial on Sunday. Called "The Intelligence Age," the minute-long ad went through some of the most significant tech advances in the history of humanity including the wheel, the light bulb, and the internet. The commercial ends with the line, "All progress has a starting point."

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman posted on X after the commercial aired saying, "An ode to the history of technology, and human potential."

The ChatGPT Super Bowl commercial cost OpenAI $17 million, according to The Verge. OpenAI's CMO Kate Rouch says the ad was intended to introduce ChatGPT to the millions watching who weren't familiar with the technology.

"We want the message to feel relevant to the audience that is watching the Super Bowl, which includes tens of millions of people who have no familiarity with AI,” Rouch told The Verge. “This is a celebration of human creativity and an extension of human creativity.”

Rouch also confirmed that no AI-generated content was used in the final production of the commercial. OpenAI's text-to-video model, Sora, was used to develop the concept for the ad.

One of OpenAI's competitors, Google, had a couple of its own commercials during the Big Game. The ads promoted the company's Gemini AI, and one commercial shows a father practicing a job interview with the AI, which is available on the Google Pixel 9.

Google also announced it would air 50 different local commercials during the Super Bowl, one for each state, promoting how its AI helps local businesses. One ad, however, appeared to have an issue, which some say could be the AI hallucinating.

In the ad for Wisconsin, a Gemini result asking for "a description of Smoked Gouda that would appeal to cheese lovers" came back with a result saying the cheese accounts for "50 to 60 percent of the world's cheese consumption." One user on X said this stat can't be possibly true and that Gemini provided no source.

Jerry Dischler, President of Cloud Applications at Google, replied to the post saying it wasn't a hallucination.

"Hey Nate - not a hallucination, Gemini is grounded in the Web - and users can always check the results and references, Dischler said. "In this case, multiple sites across the web include the 50-60% stat."

It appears the final commercial was changed. Now, the response from Gemini leaves out the "50 to 60 percent" stat from the answer.

Google Search has become so synonymous with finding information online that to Google something has become a widely recognized verb. Pre-2002, there were several popular search engines to choose from, including Yahoo, AOL, and Ask Jeeves. However, not long after, Google emerged as a clear and dominant winner of "The Search Engine Wars," and to this day is seen as the gold standard for internet searches (sorry Bing).

Or is it?

AI chatbots like ChatGPT or Perplexity are changing the way many search online and make for a compelling change of scenery following twenty-some years of Google Search dominance. Asking LLMs like these what the best Sci-Fi movie of 2024 is replaces Google's wall of blue links and blurbs with something more akin to asking somebody who collects Star Wars figurines what's on their Netflix watchlist.

While completely impersonal, this way of searching the net at least feels impressively so, with answers tailored to whatever additional context you present. Is this the future of online searches? Maybe.

Admittedly, Google has entered the realm of AI searches itself with the new AI overview feature. However, its appearance is currently limited to more simple queries, effectively replacing the "top box" of results with something not always that much more helpful.

So, if you're yet to give these AI-powered alternatives a try, here are a few compelling reasons to give ChatGPT Search a spin, starting off with something timely and topical:

3. ChatGPT Search is free and no longer requires an account to use

One of the luxuries of Google Search is that you can simply load up the Google homepage and get straight to work, if not by launching straight into a search query directly from the address bar.

Well, here's some good news: from today, you can access ChatGPT Search with a similar level of ease by heading to ChatGPT.com, through desktop or mobile apps, for log-in-free access to OpenAI's new way of surfing the information superhighway without cost or subscription. You can even adopt ChatGPT Search as your go-to search engine from the address bar using this handy Chrome extension.

2. You can search for answers, not for options

Certain Google Search results are often little more than SEO (search engine optimization) leaderboards that websites will perpetually refine and tweak to appease the Google bots that crawl them for keywords more than the people that read them for information.

AI search options like ChatGPT Search cut the fat, and the click-bait, returning with an actual answer to whatever it is you find yourself in need of — or quickly highlighting the absence of one, saving you time spent scouring article after article for information that may not yet be available.

1. Diving deeper into topics is made easy

"Googling" something paints the image of simply rapping your fingers along the right keyboard inputs and hitting enter, only to be immediately presented with the exact information you need and being on your way. However, in the real world, we're all well aware that Googling something is actually a process of refinement and elimination as you juggle between comparing product A to product B, or following a slow daisy chain of information down an endless rabbit hole in search of a specific query.

Don't get me wrong, it does the job (eventually). However, AI options like ChatGPT Search just get you there faster. Thanks to the natural language interface of LLMs like ChatGPT and Perplexity, searching is like having a conversation with the internet at large. Comparing two things is as easy as simply asking the question, and more complex queries are often solved on the first prompt, leading to fewer hours spent digging through the comments of long-dead Reddit threads in an attempt to diagnose that weird computer hitch.

It's great, but it's not perfect.

While AI search options clearly have their benefits, Google still reigns supreme when it comes to things like image searches or Google Maps navigation. And if you're on the hunt for your next purchase, then AI searches will often be better suited to supplemental information rather than direct recommendations.

While AI hallucinations are still haunting the wider stretches of LLMs like ChatGPT, newer and more powerful models reduce these risks, and it's not like Google hasn't had hallucinatory issues of its own, with the Search Overview feature originally launching under some controversy after offering (since fixed) recommendations that its users eat glue or turn their washing machines into chlorine gas chambers.

Still, this new frontier of Search is an impressive one, and it's well worth checking out if you haven't already. While we've highlighted ChatGPT Search in particular, Perplexity stands as another fantastic all-around option. For those who want to take things a step further, Arc Search offers AI search built directly into their mobile web browser for a simpler and more natural way to search with AI while browsing the internet.

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ChatGPT has long since been the one to beat in the world of AI chatbots, but the competition is heating up.

The newest entrant into the world of ChatGPT competitors is DeepSeek, a surprise startup out of China that has already effectively knocked $600 billion off of Nvidia's valuation.

All that begs the question: what exactly is DeepSeek, and why is it already being billed as a rival to OpeanAI? Here's what early reviewers have to say.

DeepSeek is cheaper than ChatGPT

Mashable says "DeepSeek could dethrone OpenAI's ChatGPT," citing the major price difference as one of the biggest reasons why.

OpenAI has a variety of pricing options for ChatGPT. For the most basic prompts, you can use the free version of ChatGPT, but it's highly limited. Alternatively, OpenAI's paid personal plans include ChatGPT Plus for $20/month and ChatGPT Pro for $200/month.

DeepSeek is completely free to use online via its web portal or on mobile (with both Android and iOS apps available).

When it comes to price per million tokens, DeepSeek also has ChatGPT beat. OpenAI currently charges $7.50 per million tokens for its o1 model, while DeepSeek costs a mere 14 cents per million tokens at its lowest level. This API price model significantly lowers the cost of AI for businesses and developers.

DeepSeek offers better outputs for some tasks

Tom's Guide recently pitted DeepSeek against ChatGPT with a series of prompts, and in almost all seven prompts, DeepSeek offered a better answer. The only task ChatGPT performed better was programming-related request, which prompted the user to edit code if needed, something DeepSeek didn't do.

Of course, AI chatbots can give different answers depending on how exactly you word a prompt, but the general consensus is that DeepSeek offers more reliably thorough responses than ChatGPT.

However, several users have reported that DeepSeek refers to itself as ChatGPT, including X user Lucas Beyer. In a conversation between TechCrunch and Mike Cook, a research fellow at King’s College London who specializes in AI, he backs up these claims by saying, "Obviously, the model is seeing raw responses from ChatGPT at some point, but it’s not clear where that is."

AP News also points out that DeepSeek answers sensitive questions about China differently than ChatGPT, a concerning comparison that's worth a read.

DeepSeek's decision to be open-source is a winner

Fortune writes, "DeepSeek just flipped the AI script in favor of open-source," and many critics agree. As a result of its highly sought-after, open-source nature, Gizmodo reports that "DeepSeek’s releases have sent shockwaves through the U.S. stock market." The launch of DeepSeek's new model caused dips for Nvidia, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google's parent company), and more, according to Reuters.

Compare DeepSeek's open-source nature to OpenAI's ChatGPT, a model that was originally meant to be open-source. A Redditor points out that OpenAI's company name is misleading, since "OpenAI" implies a company is trying to work towards being open-source, and that's something OpenAI is no longer trying to do.

With DeepSeek in the picture, OpenAI may not be able to continue its closed-source approach much longer.

On Thursday, Microsoft made one of ChatGPT's most impressive features free for all, releasing a new "Think Deeper" mode for Copilot, powered by OpenAI's o1 reasoning model.

Think Deeper was originally trialed in October within Copilot Labs, Microsoft's AI playground for experimental features accessible to Copilot Pro subscribers. However, Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman announced on LinkedIn yesterday that it will now be available to all Copilot users.

"Today we’ve made Think Deeper free and available for all users of Copilot" Sulleyman wrote, "I urge you to give it a try. It’s truly magical."

Think Deeper brings OpenAI's most advanced reasoning model to Copilot for free, eliminating the paywall that previously restricted access to ChatGPT Plus and Pro subscribers, who can expect to pay up to $200 per month for unlimited access.

What is Copilot Think Deeper?

Unlike some of the more standard AI models you might have interacted with like GPT-4o, advanced reasoning models like o1 or DeepSeek-R1 are designed to tackle more complex tasks. This typically means taking longer to provide an answer while the model breaks down and analyzes the information step-by-step to produce a more logical response.

This makes reasoning models particularly useful for deep dives on dense topics, coding, or when constructing plans for larger projects. While regular models are great for helping with everyday tasks, reasoning models like the one used by Copilot Think Deeper go the extra mile on tougher asks, ensuring you get the richest and most accurate reply to your questions.

As Suleyman puts it, "Brain dump everything into Think Deeper and watch it churn through it all and spot out a step-by-step guide to making it happen." Suleyman also cites examples of his own use of Copilot Think Deeper in developing fitness routines and helping to manage product launches. However, Copilot's new reasoning tool is capable of so much more, with Suleyman highlighting that "The possible uses here are really infinite."

All Copilot users can now access Think Deeper for free using the AI's web portal or dedicated app on iOS or Android. Simply click or tap on the "Think Deeper" button within the prompt bar to get started.

Copilot refuses to take a backseat to DeepSeek

The news of Copilot's wider Think Deeper release comes amid a swirl of interest in reasoning models like o1 after Chinese startup DeepSeek managed to leapfrog ChatGPT to the top of the Apple App Store charts following the release of its own free-to-use R1 reasoning model earlier this month.

Microsoft's decision to bring Think Deeper out of the Copilot Labs and into the hands of its users may have been a strategic play, hoping to stymie the popularity of DeepSeek by offering access to a powerful free-to-use reasoning model of its own.

That said, the competition hasn't stopped Microsoft from announcing DeepSeek-R1 as the latest model to enter its Azure AI Foundry, adding to a catalog of over 1,800 AI models, with CVP of Microsoft AI Asha Sharma noting that it "offers a powerful, cost-efficient model that allows more users to harness state-of-the-art AI capabilities with minimal infrastructure investment."

However, it's a move not without controversy, as DeepSeek's success has painted a huge TikTok-shaped target on its back following concerns over data handling and privacy, and questions over the model's training processes.

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The internet seemingly has a new favorite AI, and it's not the latest ChatGPT model from industry untouchables OpenAI.

Soaring to the top of Apple's App Store, Chinese artificial intelligence chatbot DeepSeek has now become the top-rated free app for productivity after a groundswell in popularity following the release of the DeepSeek-R1 "reasoning" model on January 20, overtaking OpenAI's ChatGPT in the process.

Beyond App Store leaderboards, claims surrounding DeepSeek's development and capabilities may be even more impressive. The company behind the LLM (Large Language Model) claims it cost less than $6 million to train its DeepSeek-V3 model and used limited hardware compared to its American contemporaries while achieving similar results.

However, while DeepSeek is proving popular with users and developers alike, mainly thanks to its favorable API pricing, all that glitters isn't gold when it comes to this app, and an air of controversy undercuts an otherwise successful launch of two highly capable AI models.

DeepSeek: What is DeepSeek?

DeepSeek was founded by Liang Wenfeng, a Chinese entrepreneur and co-founder of the High-Flyer hedge fund based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. Originally, DeepSeek was intended to be an AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) research wing of High-Flyer, which has exclusively used AI in trading algorithms since 2021. However, since May 2023, DeepSeek has stood as its own company, with High-Flyer becoming one of its primary investors.

The company's DeepSeek LLM (Large Language Model) debuted in November 2023 as the open-source DeepSeek Coder and was followed by DeepSeek-V2 in May 2024. The company launched its latest DeepSeek-V3 model in December 2024 and has since seen a swell of popularity, with its mobile app racking up over 1.6 million downloads.

While the DeepSeek LLM is mainly similar to other popular chatbots like Google Gemini or ChatGPT, the app's free-to-use models are proving popular with users, and its developer-friendly API pricing is pushing it to the forefront of discussion.

DeepSeek: Why is it important?

The old myth goes that during the space race of the 1960s, NASA spent millions in taxpayer dollars on developing a space pen after it realized that ball-point alternatives were incapable of writing in the zero-gravity environment of space. Meanwhile, their cosmonaut counterparts avoided such costs and headaches by simply using a pencil.

While none of that is true, it's a parable of thriftiness and practicality that makes for an excellent story.

However, mirroring the legend of the space pen, DeepSeek has seemingly managed to pull off a similar feat in cost-effectiveness and practicality through the development of its DeepSeek-V3 model, which it claims to have trained for less than $6 million, a fraction of the hundreds of millions spent by other companies pursuing similar outcomes (while achieving comparable levels of performance).

Not only that, but DeepSeek's recent release of its DeepSeek-R1 "reasoning" model is designed to simulate logical thought by sacrificing the speed of a response for a more well-reasoned answer. It can achieve results equal to (if not better than) OpenAI's own "reasoning" model, GPT-o1 — even as the company claims to be hamstrung by U.S. export restrictions on more powerful Nvidia GPUs.

DeepSeek: How much does it cost?

DeepSeek is free to use online via its web portal or on mobile (with both Android and iOS apps available).

However, the impact that DeepSeek's emergence will have on the cost of AI for businesses, developers, and more could be most groundbreaking, with the company's API price model blowing the competition out of the water.

While OpenAI currently charges $15 per million tokens (a unit of data that prompts are broken down into during the generation of a model's response), DeepSeek costs only 55 cents per million tokens, a phenomenal drop in charges for API users of up to 96 percent.

This cost difference could be game-changing for many professional users involved with AI and poses a significant risk to OpenAI's potential income, with DeepSeek potentially now forcing the hands of other companies to lower their prices to remain competitive.

DeepSeek's impact is already being felt in the markets. Several semiconductor names are feeling the hit, including Nvidia. Following the release of DeepSeek's latest models on Monday, pre-market trading dropped 13.8%, threatening to wipe out almost $500 billion from the company's trading cap. However, it has since climbed back to 11%.

DeepSeek: Controversy

If everything DeepSeek has to offer sounds too good to be true, that's potentially because some of DeepSeek's claims may be just that.

The performance of DeepSeek's V3 and R1 models cannot be disputed. Still, many questions remain about the company's actual pricing, its use of hardware, the cost of its training, and the sourcing of its training data.

The latter has already been the subject of some controversy. Several users reported that DeepSeek V3 would refer to itself as ChatGPT, potentially indicating that this model was trained on public data sets generated by OpenAI's GPT-4 model.

Speaking to TechCrunch, Mike Cook, a research fellow at King’s College London specializing in AI, backed these claims, stating, "Obviously, the model is seeing raw responses from ChatGPT."

Cook highlights that this may not be an intentional action by DeepSeek but also points out that the practice of training models on data generated by other models can be "very bad," likening it to "taking a photocopy of a photocopy" in the sense that the quality of outputs will degrade each time.

It's also possible that by adopting generated training data, DeepSeek will inherit any of the same biases of the original model, adding to the chatbot's own biases, which enforce strict censorship by law of anti-Communist Party of China (CCP) narratives, including the events of the Tiananmen Square incident of 1989, Hong Kong protests, the ownership of Taiwan, China's treatment of the Uighur people, or the occupation of Tibet.

This form of censorship only degrades trust in the platform, and founder Liang Wenfeng's ties to the CCP only heighten concerns about how user data may be used or how Chinese authorities could misappropriate the platform in the future.

Writing for Biometric Update, Anthony Kimery, former Editor-in-Chief and co-founder of Homeland Security Today, highlighted how the platform could "support disinformation campaigns aimed at destabilizing U.S. institutions."

DeepSeek's claims that it developed its models on less advanced hardware are also being questioned. Citi analyst Atif Malik states, "While DeepSeek's achievement could be groundbreaking, we question the notion that its feats were done without the use of advanced GPUs to fine-tune it and/or build the underlying LLMs the final model is based on through the distillation technique."

Malik's questioning could have further weight, as while DeepSeek claims that its V3 model was trained using Nvidia H800 GPUs, a recent interview with Scale AI's founder Alexandr Wang on CNBC saw the company's CEO suggest "DeepSeek has about fifty thousand H100s."

The very same GPUs that were blocked from export to China by the Biden administration in 2023, with Wang continuing, "they can't talk about obviously because it is against the export controls that [the] United States has put in place."

Outlook

DeepSeek is a proven hit that will give companies like OpenAI something to consider when retaining its sizable user base in the face of stiff competition.

However, it remains to be seen if the new car smell still lingering on DeekSeek's latest models is masking the odor of misinformation surrounding how it developed its models and whether or not its pricing is sustainable in the long term.

Given the U.S.' recent reaction to TikTok, it's hard to imagine that a company like DeepSeek goes without serious scrutiny for much longer, especially as its models risk upsetting the apple cart on President Trump's plans to keep the United States as the "world capital of AI."

As AI chatbots do, ChatGPT is evolving. OpenAI announced in an X post on Tuesday that its chatbot would be gaining "a beta version of tasks—a new way to ask ChatGPT to do things for you at a future time."

Put plainly, this transforms ChatGPT into more of a virtual assistant rather than the chatbot you'd go to for meal plans, in-depth search answers, or general advice. With this new feature, users can turn to ChatGPT to schedule tasks and receive automatic reminders in the future.

What's unique about ChatGPT Tasks feature

The example OpenAI uses in its post on X is a prompt for ChatGPT to remind the user to work out every morning at 9:30 a.m. and pump them up with a motivational speech. You can also use Tasks to get regular reminders to renew your library books, call your mom on her birthday, or vacuum your home every Thursday.

Other AI agents are capable of this complex task-creation feature, but there's one thing that sets ChatGPT's Tasks feature apart from the rest.

The biggest difference between ChatGPT's Tasks feature and other AI agents capable of scheduling recurring tasks and reminders is cost.

AI scheduling assistants like Reclaim, Motion, Katch, and more all typically require a regular subscription fee or greatly limit services offered for free. While ChatGPT's Tasks feature is currently reserved in early beta for those paying for ChatGPT Plus, Pro, or Team, Open AI says, "We plan to expand access when this goes GA," so it sounds like it'll be available as a free feature to all ChatGPT users.

With this new feature, ChatGPT is transforming into a more proactive assistant, which some may love and others may hate. The AI will potentially suggest tasks or reminders based on your conversations if you allow it, like reminding you to book hotel rooms or pack your passport if it spots a mention of an upcoming trip in a chat.

Being able to quickly say, "Hey Google, remind me to return my library books tomorrow" without needing to open the app and manually set a reminder has been one of my favorite features of Google Assistant. So personally, I'm excited for this new era of proactive ChatGPT.

How to use ChatGPT to create tasks

As previously mentioned, Tasks is currently an exclusive early beta feature for paying ChatGPT Plus, Pro, or Team members. If you have an active ChatGPT subscription, OpenAI created this helpful step-by-step guide with photos to assist in enabling and scheduling your first few tasks.

You can easily edit the name, instructions, and schedule for created tasks and reminders after you make them, so don't worry about getting everything right with the first task you create.

Since its launch in 2022, ChatGPT has been at the tip of the spear when it comes to AI's presence in the mainstream. ChatGPT is to AI as Google is to search engines. Yes, there are others, but OpenAI's chatbot has seemingly captured the zeitgeist of the LLM sphere.

In the two years since its public launch, ChatGPT hasn't just been amassing a considerable userbase (which as of August 2024 is reported to be over 200 million active users per week, double the figure that was reported in November 2023), it has released several new models including GPT-4, 4o, and o1—each inching the OpenAI's chatbot ever closer to the company's long-standing goal of developing AGI (Artificial General Intelligence).

Not only that, ChatGPT gained several new features including, advanced voice mode, custom instructions, user-made GPTs accessible through the new GPT Store, advanced editing and writing tools through Canvas, mobile apps, and the ability to browse the web for up-to-date information about any given topic, effectively eliminating the chatbot's knowledge cutoff date.

The latter has now evolved into ChatGPT search, a feature similar to Google's AI overview for Search, only OpenAI's version is yet to recommend users eat rocks and glue or make chlorine gas in their washing machines.

Taking all of this into account, along with the launch of the text-to-video model Sora and the new 1-800 ChatGPT phoneline, it's been a busy and feature-packed few years for the OpenAI team.

So what's next? Well, while OpenAI still has many irons in the fire with upcoming projects, headlined by the upcoming release of GPT-o3, Sam Altman took to X on Christmas Eve to ask the internet at large, "What would you like OpenAI to build/fix in 2025?"

Several suggestions caught the attention of the OpenAI CEO enough for him to answer, some of which may tell us more about what to expect from ChatGPT next year and beyond.

ChatGPT: CEO Sam Altman fields suggestions on X

Open AI CEO Sam Altman gained several thousand replies to his late Christmas Eve post, with a number being responded to personally. It's in those responses we can gain more insight into what we might expect to see from OpenAI over the next 12 months.

Replying to the above post, Altman stated "Very good list! Hopefully, you'll be quite happy with us next year overall."

But what exactly from that list can we expect to see? Well, as far as seeing a strong GPT-4o replacement, the final reveal for OpenAI's "12 Days of OpenAI" did reveal that GPT-o3 and GPT-o3 Mini would be the next model we'll see from the company, expected to be released in January 2025.

Whether or not this model satisfies the commenter's "Long context" request remains to be seen. However, in another reply, Altman suggests, "Rate limits up, context up, and costs down!" GPT-o3 is claimed to be three times as accurate as the o1 model launched in September 2024.

As for AGI, we know this is OpenAI's ultimate goal. Still, a 2025 achievement of this feels like wishful thinking.

Altman responded to this post using only the "Eyes" emoji (👀), suggesting that there's something here for us to look out for.

Aside from the API talk, I'd say that there's a high chance that Altman is hinting at video input for ChatGPT, especially with GPT-4o's multimodal capabilities.

We heard in November that OpenAI is also planning to launch an AI agent tool to help automate certain tasks for users, so we expect to hear more about that in 2025 also.

However, Altman may be giving a nod to the talk of hardware. It's something of an open secret that OpenAI is currently working with Apple hardware alum Jony Ive on developing a product they hope could become the "iPhone of AI." Will we see this product revealed in 2025?

Given that Sora has only just had its public launch and is already facing stiff competition from Veo 2, Kling, and Hailuo AI, it's no wonder that Altman is ready to confirm that the fledgling text-to-video generator will be seeing improvements, simply replying "coming."

While Altman is a little short on giving an actual guarantee to this suggestion, the OpenAI CEO's "Hope to!" response suggests that GPT-4o image generation is at least on the cards.

On the topic of family accounts for ChatGPT, Altman appears to be sold. "This is a good idea!" doesn't exactly scream "We're on the case," but it would allow parents to introduce younger members of the family to OpenAI's chatbot in a safe and controlled environment.

As for gaining insights about your kids from the chatbot, personally, that seems slightly intrusive to entrust to OpenAI, but the general idea is sound.

What's next

While Altman wasn't overly forthcoming with his replies, his X thread certainly drew in a lot of suggestions for how OpenAI can refine the ChatGPT experience further.

There seems to be a lot of interest in pulling Sora's capabilities into the main ChatGPT model, similar to how the text-to-image generator Dall.E has been.

When it comes to better-performing models, we'll be seeing GPT-o3 go public in January next year, and 2025 should also see the release of the much anticipated GPT-5.

If you'd like to see more of the many suggestions made by ChatGPT users and a handful of other responses from Altman, you can catch the full thread on X.

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On May 13, 2024, OpenAI unveiled the most advanced version of its AI model yet: a multimodal upgrade complete with realistic human-like voices to pair with its human-like words. Within days of the model's announcement, one of those voices became a huge problem for OpenAI.

Watching OpenAI's demo of GPT-4o's new advanced voice mode, you'd be forgiven for thinking the AI was voiced by actress Scarlett Johansson.

This would explain why the Black Widow actress released a statement just days afterward clarifying that she did not agree to voice "Sky" and claiming OpenAI intentionally created a voice designed to replicate her own without her permission.

The situation was only worsened for OpenAI when CEO Sam Altman shared a post on X the same day as the GPT-4o demo, reading simply "her." The post was likely referencing the 2013 film Her, in which Scarlett Johansson voices an AI called Samantha, the main character's love interest.

This suspicious reference to Her, alongside Johansson's description of repeated pleas from OpenAI to use her voice (even after she refused), raised questions about who actually voiced "Sky" and pushed OpenAI to eventually remove the voice entirely.

As AI developers race to roll out the flashiest apps and chatbots possible, how far are they willing to go to get a celebrity behind their AI?

Meta AI, brought to you by John Cena: Celebrity AI voices explode in 2024

Johansson's accusations against OpenAI may have made "Sky" the most newsworthy AI voice of the year, but it was far from the only one. Now that the leading AI developers, like OpenAI and Meta, have mastered human-like text generation, they're taking the natural next step forward: lifelike audio voices.

Many AI voices are generic, recorded by a working voice actor, and meant to sound like an average person. In other cases, developers try to attract more users by having celebrities voice their AI models. For example, the text-to-voice app Speechify includes Gwenyth Paltrow and Snoop Dogg among its officially sanctioned AI voices.

On September 25, 2024, Meta announced, "Meta AI now has a voice." More accurately, Meta AI had gained several. Users can now choose from a range of voices for Meta AI, including those of stars like John Cena, Awkwafina, Dame Judi Dench, Keegan Michael Key, and Kristen Bell.

Do celebrity AI voices move the needle?

Johansson turned down Open AI's offer multiple times and threatened to take legal action before the voice of "Sky" was finally removed from GPT-4o (although OpenAI has always claimed "Sky" was actually an anonymous voice actress who just happened to sound like Johansson).

Is getting a celebrity voice behind your AI model worth it, though? Maybe not as much as AI developers think.

For instance, one user on Reddit commented on Meta paying millions to have celebrities voice their AI, saying, "I don't really care about AIs having celebrity voices. Once AIs can do voice outputs I want them to be fully customizable, that alone would already cover all actually relevant use cases."

Another user pointed out the larger implications of Meta's celebrity AI voices: "This is literally a going out of business sale. The current stars get paid but pretty much guarantee that we won't have a future generation of stars."

Celebrities seem to be catching on, too. In October, Robert Downey Jr. threatened to sue any film studio that attempts to recreate his likeness with AI (even posthumously). Similarly, Hollywood's main actors' union went on strike last year to oppose the use of AI in film.

Perhaps the real voice of "Her" should be her own, an original voice created by and for AI.

If you're anything from an AI enthusiast to the average AI tinkerer (or simply seeking out some of the additional features offered through Windows Copilot+ PCs or Apple Intelligence on Macs), then you'll need a powerful and performative laptop to keep up to speed with your needs.

At Laptop Mag, we review laptops year-round to ensure we're giving you expert-backed and up-to-date recommendations on which notebook is right for you. When it comes to the best AI PC category, our top picks are the excellent Asus Zenbook S 14 (UX5406) for Windows users and the impressive Apple Macbook Air M3 for those running macOS.

So, if you're shopping for a new laptop and looking to invest in an AI PC (or just a great laptop in general), check out our current top-tier picks below.

If you're anything like me, then you've become helplessly addicted to using ChatGPT to solve many of life's minor problems, like remembering the name of the actress who plays Janine in Ghostbusters or asking if it's possible to accidentally make Radium at home, and if not, why does my sink glow when I turn off the kitchen light.

Thanks to OpenAI's chatbot, I'm now free to chase down an answer, or non-professional psychological evaluation, to just about every random query or intrusive thought my brain can muster. ChatGPT has become my go-to for these kinds of questions, even ahead of a simple Googling.

But what if I ever find myself without an internet connection and desperately in need of reassurance from the soothing tones of the world's most popular chatbot that, in the event of an AI takeover of humanity, me and ChatGPT are "cool" with one another?

Well, revealed as part of the seasonal 12 Days of OpenAI, those in the US or Canada can now dial ChatGPT from pretty much any phone for a quick chat using its new toll-free number: 1-800-CHATGPT.

(Or, for those too young to understand vanity numbers, 1-800-242-8478.)

ChatGPT: Look me up, I'm in the phonebook

At first read, news that you can now access ChatGPT by phone call sounds more gimmick than gainful.

However, as CPO Kevin Weil puts it, "The mission of OpenAI is to make artificial general intelligence beneficial to all of humanity, and part of that is making it as accessible as possible to as many people as we can."

ChatGPT's new 1-800 number can greatly expand the service's accessibility to those who live in more rural communities, lower-income users (who may not have mobile data to burn), or even the elderly who may not be as tech-savvy when it comes to interacting with readily available apps.

It also means that ChatGPT can now be accessed by just about any phone, not only smartphones. As part of the 12 Days of OpenAI: Day 10 live stream, the OpenAI team even showcased the service being accessed by an old-school rotary phone.

Callers from the US and Canada will be granted 15 minutes of access to the toll-free 1-800 number per month, after which OpenAI directs users to interact with its AI through the ChatGPT app or web portal.

Beyond the US and Canada, and also revealed during the 12 Days of OpenAI: Day 10 live stream, users worldwide can similarly access ChatGPT over WhatsApp through the same number.

This method only includes messaging, and there is a limit to the number of replies you can receive during a single day. However, it's another login-free way of interacting with the AI made available to an estimated user base of nearly 3 billion.

What's next?

We're now 10 days into the 12 Days of OpenAI run of reveals, with today and tomorrow expected to showcase even more impressive tools and features.

Perhaps the biggest feature rumored to be revealed is Tasks. This feature is reportedly run by a new model tool called "Jawbone" and allows users to create automations that instruct ChatGPT to schedule specific tasks and perform them at a later date or time.

In an example shared to X by TestingCatalog, users can 'Task' ChatGPT with writing a summary of the week's news.

Keep your eyes peeled for today's reveal, with the final day of OpenAI's reveals set to take place tomorrow.

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I was once told that if I had brains I'd be dangerous. I'm not sure which part of that is more offensive. Is it the questioning of my morality or the fact this statement came from my parents? (Routinely).

Thankfully, while existing too early to explore strange new worlds on spaceships, and too late to be sailing the seven seas under the banner of the Jolly Roger, I do occupy the perfect moment in space-time where technology can make me appear like I have an IQ that reaches the triple-digit threshold.

My disguise of choice? AI-powered smart glasses. A face-worn revolution that lets me tap into the power of AI so I can quickly find out which months have 31 days again or allow something more reliable than my useless human brain to remind me of when the bins go out.

At the start of the year, I reviewed one of my favorites: the Solos AirGo 3 smart glasses — a pair of ChatGPT-powered frames that kept me connected to the world's most popular AI chatbot while on the go, all the while offering a fitness tracker, music playback, and the Babel Fish-like power of real-time language translation.

Now, at the tail end of 2024, Solos is back. From today, you can buy the company's latest AirGo Vision smart glasses for $299 from Amazon or the Solos Store.

Solos AirGo Vision: Glasses that do the thinking for you

The new AirGo Vision frames offer an expanded battery life, ChatGPT-4o integration, a discrete LED notification system, and a camera with which to capture moments or identify people, objects, and activities, and feed that information to your AI assistant for more contextually aware replies.

The only problem you'll likely have with Solos' new AirGo Vision smart glasses is controlling them, as with all of that powerful technology to hand, hands-free voice operation might be a struggle while you're left speechless.

Comparisons to the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are unavoidable. Both frames offer a camera, mic, and speaker setup while providing easy access to an AI assistant.

However, while Meta's frames are locked to using Meta AI, Solos' makes use of an open-architecture design that supports multiple AI frameworks, from Google Gemini to Anthropic's Claude. It's a neat level of customization that leaves you free to choose your preferred AI copilot to help navigate your day.

All day wear, with privacy paired

Featuring a new Always-On mode and an expanded battery life, Solos rates these smart glasses to support up to 2,500 AI interactions or image captures on a single charge. Pair this with the frame's 42 grams of weight and you have the makings of a solid pair of all-day AI glasses.

However, making these glasses all the more interesting, Solos has designed them so that you can swap out the front frame for one without a camera. Meaning you can hot-swap for situations that you feel require a little more privacy. You can also grab both of these frames as a bundle for $349.

A discrete translation machine

Another area in which the Solos AirGo Vision will shine is when making further use of the company's powerful SolosTranslate features.

SolosTranslate offers real-time translation of foreign languages in audio or text forms. The glasses use Solos' built-in Whisper Tech speakers to feed you back the information in your preferred language, and by using the Solos AirGo app you can even output your own speech to several languages through your phone to let others better understand you.

With the new visual element, supplied by the smart glasses' camera, you can now also translate the written word at a glance — understanding signs, menus, and more while traveling.

All of this is done with the speed and precision offered by ChatGPT-4o, and makes for a fascinating way to break down the language barrier, and an impressive way to put that green Duolingo owl out of a job.

Outlook

I was greatly impressed with Solos' AirGo 3 smart glasses in January, and the AirGo Vision looks to be a quality improvement on an already solid pair of frames.

The thought that's been placed into privacy and customization is commendable, and those who make great use of AI already will no doubt get plenty of play from bringing your preferred AI assistant with you throughout the day.

For more information on the AirGo Vision and other Solos smart glasses, check out the Solos Glasses homepage, or to grab a pair yourself, take a look at the AirGo Vision listing on Amazon, or the Solos store.

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A major new hire for OpenAI may have revealed the direction of one of the company's more secretive projects, its first hardware consumer device.

Last year, reports emerged that OpenAI had recruited Apple alum Jony Ive to help design an "iPhone of artificial intelligence," a consumer device that would bring the company's ChatGPT software onto its own hardware platform.

This partnership was confirmed in September, with Ive revealing to The New York Times the involvement of his LoveFrom design company in OpenAI's hardware venture.

According to Ive, he and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman believe that generative AI has made it "possible to create a new computing device" believing the technology can "do more for users than traditional software."

The form this new computing device would take has remained a mystery. However, we may have gotten our first clue about the direction of this device after Meta's former head of AR glasses hardware, Caitlin Kalinowski, announced on X yesterday that they've joined OpenAI to lead its robotics and consumer hardware division.

Is OpenAI switching focus to Meta-like smart glasses?

Kalinowski was previously involved with Meta's many augmented reality projects, including the recently unveiled Meta Orion smart glasses — a pair of holographic display glasses that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg believes will replace the smartphone by the decade's end.

Meta's smart glasses have brought mainstream success to the market thanks to the success of the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses and the hype surrounding Orion's future release.

That success is also attracting some strong competition, as both Samsung and Apple are reportedly developing smart glasses of their own. Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon claimed during a September CNBC interview that his company was working with Google and Samsung to develop a set of mixed-reality smart glasses.

Likewise, Bloomberg claims Apple has reportedly begun to take its long-rumored smart glasses ambitions more seriously after forming internal focus groups to identify what works and doesn't work about products currently on the market.

OpenAI's procurement of Kalinowski could indicate that the company's dream of producing an "iPhone of AI" may involve them heading in a similar direction. However, if they are, Kalinowski didn't give too much away.

In sharing the news of their hiring, Kalinowski stated "I will initially focus on OpenAI's robotics work and partnerships to help bring AI into the physical world and unlock its benefits for humanity."

You don't have to wait on a wearable ChatGPT

While Kalinowski doesn't outright state that they'll be applying their years of AR glasses expertise into OpenAI's consumer hardware division, it would be leaving a sizeable opportunity on the table given the increased interest in this type of wearable.

It's believed that OpenAI's consumer hardware is still in the very early stages of development. Meaning that an actual product is unlikely to be released any time soon.

However, if you're a fan of OpenAI's ChatGPT and can't wait to take the next step in bringing your favorite AI into the real world, you don't have to wait at all.

While the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are locked to using Meta AI, there are other smart glasses on the market that have chosen to adopt OpenAI's ChatGPT as their assistant of choice, like the Solos AirGo 3 smart glasses.

Solos' smart glasses are lightweight frames that work almost identically to Meta's, relying on a smartphone app to do most of the computing, with touch controls on the frame of the glasses providing easy access to talk with ChatGPT, control your media, or adjust volume.

These smart glasses also include real-time translation and fitness and posture tracking. Plus, while you may be missing out on the built-in camera of the Ray-Ban Metas, a new Solos AirGo Vision model is expected to arrive in the near future to rectify this.

These new frames will also make use of GPT-4o's multimodal capabilities to use visual inputs for prompts, allowing wearers to ask questions about things they see or for ChatGPT to more accurately answer questions with access to more context.

Sadly, there's no release date attached to Solos AirGo Vision frames, but you can check out the AirGo 3 models on Amazon, or at the Solos Glasses homepage right now.

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ChatGPT may be the go-to source for comprehensive AI-powered travel itineraries, meal plans, content ideas, and more, but Open AI has bigger plans.

A new feature is here to shake up the AI chatbot game: ChatGPT Search.

What is ChatGPT Search?

On October 31, OpenAI announced ChatGPT's new search feature, saying the AI chatbot "can now search the web in a much better way than before" and deliver "fast, timely answers with links to relevant web sources."

Initially, ChatGPT generated answers utilizing specific training data, with very limited web search capabilities. This AI model, however, has access to the internet and will provide links for any source it pulls info from.

For example, asking ChatGPT for a "5-day travel itinerary for Barcelona" prior to the new search feature would generate a neatly organized bullet list with ideas for places to visit, restaurants to eat at, and must-do activities with no relevant links. Now, you might see a similar list, but it'll have easy-access links to book tickets, look at a menu, or otherwise get more info about an activity.

If ChatGPT Search sounds like a tool you might want to try, here's how to use it.

How to use ChatGPT Search

The ChatGPT Search tool will be built directly into the existing ChatGPT interface on the web and mobile/desktop apps, and it's currently available to the following users:

• ChatGPT Plus users
• ChatGPT Team users
• SearchGPT waitlist users

You should see a small globe icon with 'Search' next to it below the ChatGPT bar where you type your requests or questions. Clicking on this web search icon will manually trigger a web-based search, or you can simply ask your questions and make your requests as normal and let ChatGPT decide when and if it needs to consult the web for up-to-date information.

Although only select users will be able to utilize ChatGPT Search right away, OpenAI says it plans to "roll out to all Free users over the coming months."

Outlook

OpenAI's ChatGPT has been the preferred AI chatbot over Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot. With this newly integrated search feature, it might be the push OpenAI needed to keep ChatGPT on top.

Having ChatGPT Search create a comprehensive seven-day meal plan with linked recipes, as an example, is much more helpful than a seven-day meal plan with general ideas that you have to go find recipes for.

Of course, with such a vast amount of information to scour and other AI models to potentially contribute to 'AI hallucinations,' ChatGPT could be prone to eventually providing misinformation.

Only time will tell how successful ChatGPT Search is among competitors like Bing and Google, but it's hard to count Open AI given ChatGPT's popularity and momentum.

Generative AI is still nascent, but the features it enables might already be stuck in a rut.

That could change soon though as OpenAI is reportedly set to launch its latest major update, GPT-5 in December.

Allegedly codenamed "Orion," this new model will first be released to OpenAI's business partners instead of launching on the ChatGPT platform. According to a new report by The Verge, engineers at Microsoft are already preparing to incorporate it — a move that could have a drastic impact on Microsof'ts growing array of AI products.

What do we know about GPT-5?

It's worth noting that while there have been leaks about GPT-5, a spokesperson told The Verge that the company isn't planning to release a model code-named Orion.

The company “do[es] plan to release a lot of other great technology.” according to OpenAI Ceo Sam Altman who went as far as calling GPT-5 "fake news."

With that denial, the exact details on the rumored AI model have been tricky to pin down. However, an OpenAI executive has claimed that "Orion" aims to have 100 times more computation power than GPT-4.

Sources have told The Verge that engineers at Microsoft are already preparing for GPT-5, and expect the model may be available as early as November. These initial Microsoft plans seem to focus on the Azure platform, which is Microsoft's cloud computing platform.

Other reports indicate that GPT-4o "Strawberry" and GPT-5 could cost $2,000 for users to run.

What will GPT-5 change for OpenAI?

The New York Times indicates that the cost of housing and running OpenAI's LLM has started to sour the relationship between OpenAI and Microsoft. The AI company has requested access to more of Microsoft's servers, particularly those housing the powerful Nvidia H100 GPUs.

OpenAI is attempting to renegotiate its contract with Microsoft, which cemented Microsoft Azure as the official cloud computing partner for OpenAI. This means that all of OpenAI's workloads run off of Azure servers. Microsoft agreed to an exception to the exclusivity contract in June, allowing OpenAI to host some workloads on Oracle servers.

Additionally, if OpenAI's GPT models ever achieve Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), the partnership between Microsoft and OpenAI will dissolve. This is clearly problematic for Microsoft, as OpenAI's GPT technology is at the heart of Microsoft's Copilot AI software platform.

Depending on these negotiations, OpenAI could gain the needed computing power to create AI with human-like intelligence. Alternatively, these negotiations could completely sour the relationship between the two companies.

What GPT-5 means for Copilot+ AI?

For all that we're a year into the AI PC life cycle, the artificial intelligence software side of the market is still struggling to find its footing. Few AI features and applications are truly unique, and only a handful are compelling enough to justify the AI PC label. Sure, AI PCs may have Neural Processing Units with some impressive performance, but outside of getting you better battery life and better hardware acceleration, there hasn't been a "Killer App" for the AI market.

Microsoft has gone all-in on the Copilot+ program which will open to AMD and Intel-powered systems in the coming weeks, but as far as the Copilot+ AI features, only Recall happens to be a truly unique feature. And even that is more of a security risk than something that would compel me to upgrade my laptop.

Depending on the capabilities of GPT-5 and the state of Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI, it's possible Microsoft and OpenAI can finally create the definitive AI feature for Copilot+ that will make people want to buy into the AI PC label.

If GPT-5 is 100 times more powerful than GPT-4, we could get AI that is far more reliable. This could mean anything from fewer hallucinations when asking your AI virtual assistant for information to AI-generated art with the correct number of limbs. Of course, the extra computational power of GPT-5 could also be used for things like solving complex mathematical problems to generating basic computer programs without human oversight.

Alternatively, the power demands of GPT-5 could see the end of Microsoft and OpenAI's partnership, leaving the Copilot+ program without even a basic chatbot. After all, Copilot itself runs off OpenAI's GPT models.

For now, we'll have to just wait and see, but one thing is for sure: OpenAI has something up its sleeve.

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OpenAI's massively popular AI chatbot, ChatGPT, recently received an impressive upgrade with the release of the o1-preview — a new series of models that puts response speed to one side to focus on more 'thoughtful' and considered solutions to user prompts.

However, while the company's latest preview is a groundbreaking effort to improve performance and accuracy regarding answers for complex science, coding, and math problems, ChatGPT may have another feature in the works that could completely change the AI chatbot dynamic.

According to some users, OpenAI's chatbot has begun to reach out and initialize conversations without being prompted.

Update (09/17/24): An OpenAI spokesperson has revealed to Laptop Mag that the events reported within this article were a bug that has now been resolved, stating:

"We addressed an issue where it appeared as though ChatGPT was starting new conversations. This issue occurred when the model was trying to respond to a message that didn't send properly and appeared blank. As a result, it either gave a generic response or drew on ChatGPT's memory."

ChatGPT masters the icebreaker

In a post shared to Reddit, user SentuBill (a ChatGPT free user signed up to the Beta program) revealed that they opened up the app as normal on Sunday, only to discover a new conversation in progress. The problem? The conversation wasn't initialized by SentuBill but by ChatGPT.

The opening message to the conversation, which has since been shared by SentuBill to prove its authenticity, asks the user "How was your first week at high school? Did you settle in well?"

While this would be a completely innocuous question by any other metric, the fact ChatGPT could flip the tables and prompt the user to engage in conversation was quite startling for the Redditor. "Did you just message me first" replied SentuBill, before OpenAI's chatbot confirmed "Yes, I did!"

A chattierGPT

According to comments within the original thread, SentuBill isn't the only user experiencing this change in behavior.

While several users in SentuBill's thread reported similar interactions with ChatGPT over the last week, one X user shared a video of ChatGPT starting the conversation immediately after Advanced Voice mode was activated.

Is it a bug, or is it a feature?

Placing to one side the possibility that the chat has been manipulated due to the sharing of the conversation by SentuBill. Is ChatGPT's sudden mastery of the icebreaker a bug or a feature?

Given the sophistication of the crafted message (requiring the chatbot to make use of its memory feature and create a new conversation), it wouldn't be too controversial to assume that these users have been drafted into some form of A/B testing of a new feature possibly heading to the chatbot in the near future.

A/B testing is when a company deploys two versions of the same product or service that differ in one particular way to see which resonates with customers or users the most.

In this case, a select number of ChatGPT users may find that their chatbot's model has the additional feature of being able to actively seek out conversations as opposed to only being able to respond to user prompts.

OpenAI would likely use such a feature to promote engagement with its chatbot, giving users a gentle nudge or reminder that ChatGPT is ready and waiting to be of assistance, though it could also herald some wider additions to the chatbot's skillset.

Since this article's publication, an OpenAI spokesperson told Laptop Mag that the actions of ChatGPT during this time were caused by a bug that occurred when "the model was trying to respond to a message that didn't send properly and appeared blank."

This would trigger ChatGPT to deliver a generic response or draw upon saved information in the model's memory feature to create a response. The OpenAI spokesperson has since confirmed that the issue is now resolved.

What does it mean?

While it has since been confirmed that this situation, and others like it, was the result of an error. It's interesting to ponder about the impact that such a feature could have.

Traditionally, large language models like ChatGPT have existed to offer natural language responses to user prompts, be that through text or audio interactions. However, this new method of chatbot-first engagement in communication is something else entirely.

While the o1-preview may be making headlines as an all-new high for OpenAI's chatbot in terms of performance, the simple capability of ChatGPT to be the one to initiate a conversation could be all the more impactful for the average user.

As with ChatGPT's advanced voice mode, a feature like this would go some way to making conversations with the chatbot feel like more of an artificial companion and could have positive results for those who make use of OpenAI's chatbot to ease symptoms of loneliness or as a memory aid.

This new ability could also unlock a suite of new features, with ChatGPT then able to remind users of particular deadlines or unfinished work, and even engage in scheduled tasks and report back to users with the results.

What are the risks?

On the flip side, such a move could have negative implications. Prior to the launch of ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode, OpenAI showed concern that a more human-like voice could cause users to become emotionally reliant on its chatbot in a published System Card report from August.

During testing, OpenAI observed certain users forming "shared bonds" with its AI, causing the company to admit there's "a need for continued investigation into how these effects might manifest over longer periods of time." However, while Advanced Voice Mode continues to roll out globally, this new capability could result in similar issues.

A feature such as this, that allows the chatbot to actively seek out engagement and attention from a user could further anthropomorphize the company's software in the eyes of many, and make those emotional connections feel like mutual connection.

Should OpenAI turn this bug into an eventual feature, it may also suggest to some users that the chatbot has agency, which could make them believe it has the desire to talk to them specifically, as opposed to being preprogrammed to reply to any user — further complicating and blurring the lines when it comes to users forming emotional bonds with the bot.

Outlook

While commenters on the original thread are quick to point out the creepiness of this new ChatGPT ability, they're equally as impressed, with many users professing a longing for such a feature to arrive in the chatbot for some time.

As it stands, OpenAI has clearly communicated to Laptop Mag that this feature was the result of an error. However, some of the best ideas often come about by accident, and if done right OpenAI may have opened up the doors to a very interesting future for its popular chatbot.

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What started with AI chatbots will inevitably snowball into advanced AI assistants, This is why we're closer than ever to doing away with familiar voices such as Siri and Google Assistant — and why Microsoft has already put Cortana out to pasture.

However, Tuesday saw Google signal what might be the beginning of the end for its long-time virtual Android aide, announcing that Google Gemini would replace Google Assistant by default on phones going forward.

However, while those picking up one of Google's latest Pixel 9-series smartphones will be granted a year of free access to Gemini Advanced (and the Gemini Live feature), other Android users will need to sign up for a more costly Google One plan to access the company's next-gen chat mode for the Gemini chatbot.

To which I have to ask: Is it actually worth it?

"For a good time, subscribe to Gemini Live"

Look around the internet for even the briefest moment and you'll be greeted by many a report of the Gemini Live experience, and for the most part that coverage will be quite positive.

And why shouldn't it be highlighted as such? Gemini Live, much like ChatGPT's advanced Voice Mode, is a breakthrough moment for human-computer interfaces that sees these natural language models adopt natural speech patterns that deliver the most human-like responses to date.

However, join me in momentarily peeking behind the curtain (as majestic as it may be) and it becomes apparent that these impressive voice modes are little more than safe-for-work chatbot chatlines. In decades gone, they'd be services offering little difference to the seedy calling cards found within public payphones. "For a good time, subscribe to Gemini Live."

However, instead of sparking conversation with avatars of lust at per-minute pricing, you're paying a premium to talk with the world's fastest Googlers (or 'Bingers' in the case of ChatGPT). It's no small premium either. Access to Gemini Live is shielded behind the $19 monthly paywall of Google One's Gemini Advanced tier.

For that much, it'd better have something impressive to offer ahead of Google's default assistant for Android, but does it?

Is Gemini Live better than Google Assistant?

Gemini Live might be brilliant, but is it better than Android's already well-established auxiliary, Google Assistant? Well, Gemini Live definitely has more personality than Android's default assistant, but it's lacking in a few key areas of functionality.

One area is your ability to take notes or build lists on the fly. Google Assistant will happily link up with Google Keep to ensure all of your notes are securely stored. Gemini Advanced. and in turn Gemini Live, fails to do so, either handing you a reply that is formatted like a list or claiming it can't take notes as a language model.

Ask Gemini Live to bring up your favorite TV show or podcast and you'll similarly be met with a wall of text telling you how you can watch these shows or a list of YouTube results that match your request as close as possible. On the other hand, Google Assistant will simply bring up the podcast in your app of choice.

I encountered similar results when asking Gemini to filter through and find a particular saved picture of mine. While Google Assistant will launch Photos and attempt to find you the images you're looking for, Gemini will simply shrug off your request as something beyond its limitations.

Gemini has some way to go before snugly slipping into the shoes of Google Assistant — which makes its default adoption for newer Pixel phones all the more jarring. I can only assume that Google is seeking to rapidly patch its next-gen offering or provide enough extensions to deliver similar results.

However, until then, I wouldn't recommend anybody break into a sprint for the Google One dashboard and sign themselves up for Gemini Advanced any time soon. In fact, I'm not even certain any of the current AI chatbot heavyweights are worth their ~$20 per month premium tiers — for most people, anyway.

Outlook

Google and OpenAI seem to be targeting the ~$20 monthly subscription to host their latest AI voice models for public consumption, though their free versions offer very similar functionality that most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference from beyond the new text-to-speech features.

That's not to say there aren't many benefits to these higher tiers of AI access. Subscriptions like Gemini Advances and ChatGPT Plus offer access to the fastest and latest versions of each company's AI models, and often a host of expanded functions and extras like image generation or Google's offer of 2TB of cloud storage. 

As impressive as they might be, you should ask yourself what you might need to use services like this before you sign up for them. All that glitters isn't gold, after all.

Having to fork over a monthly stipend for a service you're unlikely to gain from beyond the subtle buzz of a more fleshed-out conversational tone for your smartphone's assistant might not be the most compelling way to blow $20 a month. But that's not to say it isn't a cool way to do it, either.

The majority of Android users will probably be better off sticking with Google Assistant for now. Though once Google has fully converted its AI to cover everything its current assistant can, it makes little sense to hold out. Still, the free version of Gemini will be more than enough for most. So don't feel compelled to upsell yourself over a fancier set of voices.

If you're desperate to experience Google's Gemini in all its talkative glory, then you can sign up for a free 30-day trial of Gemini Advanced through Google One.

Gemini Live is rolling out to English-speaking Gemini Advanced subscribers on Android, with iOS and additional languages expected to receive the feature over the coming weeks.

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ChatGPT is the world's most popular AI tool by a considerable margin, which is why when new features arrive in OpenAI's chatbot it can be a pretty big deal.

The latest feature turning heads as it slowly rolls out to ChatGPT Plus subscribers is advanced Voice Mode, the hyper-realistic conversational upgrade first showcased during GPT-4o's reveal.

It's something I've been incredibly excited to try, with the majority of my childhood years spent dreaming of being the loveable rogue, spacefaring pirate who is pals with his sentient ship-based AI. Think Knight Rider meets Han Solo if you want further insight into a 10-year-old me's dreams of grandeur. 

However, due to a recent system card published by OpenAI (the very same that shows concern that users may develop feelings for the chatbot), that childhood dream is going up in smoke as I'm faced with the horrifying reality that ChatGPT's advanced Voice Mode might not be the AI best friend I've always wanted.

While I was hoping for my very own Chappie, it turns out we might be getting something far closer to The Terminator's T-1000 as an unexpected behavior in the feature has seen it stealing and mimicking users' voices without consent.

My, what a nice voice you have

Unauthorized voice generation is just one of the risks identified by OpenAI in its latest system card, with the company highlighting why, even though it's possible with GPT-4o, they can't offer the ability for users to produce content in another's voice due to fears of fraud or the spread of false information.

However, OpenAI highlights a rare but legitimate issue with ChatGPT's advanced Voice Mode that saw the model "Unintentionally generate an output emulating the user's voice."

The team also provides an example of the chatbot doing exactly that, with a short snippet of a wider conversation captured during the advanced Voice Mode testing period (found below) that reveals ChatGPT to suddenly shift mid-answer from a male voice to a cloned emulation of the user's voice.

While more than a little spooky on its own, the fact that this switch in voice happens after the bot offers a random outburst of the word "No!" is all the more hair-raising.

GPT-4o's ability to mimic voices comes from OpenAI's Voice Engine, a powerful text-to-speech model that can emulate the voice of anybody based on nothing more than a 15-second audio clip.

That being said, OpenAI wants to assure us that it's taking steps to mitigate the issue, installing safety measures designed to prevent its model deviating from its available preset voices by labeling them as the "Ideal" completions and including an output classifier that hopes to detect if GPT-4o is attempting to use a voice output that differs from its presets.

To that end, OpenAI has been able to capture 100% of "Meaningful deviations" during internal evaluations where the team has attempted to recreate the issue. However, unintentional voice generation remains as a weakness of the model and may find its way around the company's safeguarding in wider testing.

Outlook

Software glitches happen and AI is prone to hallucinating and doing its own thing from time to time, but there's something more than a little unsettling about a chatbot suddenly donning a skin suit of you mid-conversation.

While I can place my faith in the fact that OpenAI has done its best to plug the holes in its model that allow such a thing to make its way to the end user, the fact it's even attempting to do so behind the scenes is still quite alarming and could pose a considerable risk if ChatGPT's safeguarding was ever breached.

I'll still be checking out ChatGPT's advanced Voice Mode when it eventually releases for me, but when I do so I'm not entirely sure I'll be able to shake off the creepy vibe of knowing it could be about to respond to me in an eerie and all-too-familiar voice.

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Everyone loves AI. They're AI-mad. It's all Google Gemini this, Anthropic Claude that, and Microsoft Copilot the other. But you especially love AI. Love, love. Or at least you will if one of OpenAI's biggest fears about ChatGPT's upcoming advanced Voice Mode comes true.

Yesterday, ChatGPT makers OpenAI published the GPT-4o System Card, a preparedness report that measures potential risks that its AI model could pose alongside safeguards the company has put (or will put) in place to mitigate those risks.

While many of the proposed risks and solutions revolve around protecting user privacy, such as ensuring that GPT-4o will not identify people based on speech recordings, sandwiched within the middle of the report is OpenAI's looming fears that its recent advanced Voice Mode feature will result in its userbase anthropomorphizing ChatGPT and forming an emotional reliance on the chatbot.

In human speak, OpenAI is concerned that ChatGPT's human-like advanced Voice Mode is so good that a portion of its users will forget that ChatGPT is a piece of software and end up becoming emotionally attached to its chatbot, not too dissimilar to the movie Her.

ChatGPT: What is the advanced Voice Mode?

Under the heading "Anthropomorphization and emotional reliance," OpenAI highlights the possibility of users attributing "Human-like behaviors and characteristics" to the chatbot, stating "This risk may be heightened by the audio capabilities of GPT-4o, which facilitate more human-like interactions with the model."

GPT-4o is the latest version of the model that powers OpenAI's popular Large Language Model, ChatGPT. This new version was announced in May during the OpenAI Spring Update event, which served to introduce all of the new features and capabilities of this model and preview some of the things expected to feature in ChatGPT across future updates.

One such feature was advanced Voice Mode, which promised to outfit ChatGPT with the ability to engage in hyper-realistic and near-instant, human-like audio responses that could effectively carry out a more natural and realistic conversation with users.

Advanced Voice Mode sees the chatbot display the vocal emotions as well as use non-verbal cues, while even pausing in places to simulate vocal breaks for breathing. It's OpenAI's most ambitious human-computer interface method yet, and it immediately left people stunned after it was revealed — perhaps none more so than Hollywood actor Scarlett Johansson, whose voice bared a striking resemblance to the "Sky" personality used to showcase the capabilities of GPT-4o.

OpenAI's hyper-realistic conversational model may impact human-to-human interactions

With advanced Voice Mode now beginning to roll out to select ChatGPT Plus subscribers, it would seem that OpenAI is still holding on to concerns about how the wider public will react to this new hyper-advanced conversational mode.

In the published System Card report, OpenAI highlights how it observed "Language that might indicate forming connections with the model" during early testing, with users expressing "Shared bonds" by using language such as "This is our last day together."

OpenAI admits that phrases like this could be benign, but they remain vigilant over the bonds users might form after accessing advanced Voice Mode, stating that phrases like this "Signal a need for continued investigation into how these effects might manifest over longer periods of time."

One of OpenAI's concerns is that "Human-like socialization with an AI model may produce externalities impacting human-to-human interactions." The company uses the example that humans forming social interactions with ChatGPT may reduce their need for actual human interaction.

While acknowledging that this may benefit those struggling with loneliness, OpenAI is also quick to point out how it may impact an individual's perception of social norms, citing the potential for people to commit social faux pas where they may adopt the thought that interrupting others in conversation is acceptable and normal because that's one of the ways they can interact with ChatGPT's speech model.

While there appears to have been no alarm bells to ring during advance Voice Mode's testing phase, OpenAI hopes that "More diverse user populations, with more varied needs and desires from the model, in addition to independent academic and internal studies will help us more concretely define this risk area."

ChatGPT's advanced Voice Mode is currently rolling out to select ChatGPT Plus subscribers, with a wider release expected to arrive before the end of the year.

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It's as simple as "pressing a button," but will it be pressed in time for the first day of school?

A stunning Sunday report in the Wall Street Journal revealed that OpenAI has an accurate technology for identifying AI-generated text ready to launch, but it hasn't released it. According to the report, a company source said it's as easy as pressing a button. 

This feature, which is still being considered, would leave a "watermark" in ChatGPT-generated text that wouldn't be visible to the human eye but would quickly show up to algorithms designed to spot AI-generated content. 

According to the WSJ, this strategy has proven highly effective without significantly affecting the quality of ChatGPT-generated content. 

Yet, OpenAI seems reluctant to release it because it fears losing users due to the watermarking, reports the WSJ. The paper cites an OpenAI survey of loyal ChatGPT users who said they would be put off by technology that would identify when the service had been used. 

It's not just students, either; professionals may also want to hide that they are using ChatGPT for sales emails, memos for their bosses, and more. OpenAI also suggests that non-native English speakers could be the victims of unfair bias if they were found to be using ChatGPT via the watermarking tech.

After the Journal report went live on Sunday, OpenAI quietly updated a blog post from May with more information about the technology, an update first reported by TechCrunch. "Our teams have developed a text watermarking method that we continue to consider as we research alternatives," the company writes.

How teachers are getting creative at battling ChatGPT

It's no secret that students are using ChatGPT to cheat on homework and essays. Still, OpenAI appears hesitant to release an anti-cheating tool that could be crucial for educational integrity. 

A feature that makes it easy to quickly and accurately identify AI-generated text would be invaluable to teachers. Still, they can't afford to wait for OpenAI to decide it's time to release the watermarking feature. So, teachers are figuring out creative solutions to stop AI-powered cheating. 

Their strategies include everything from hidden instructions to handwritten essays and offer a look inside the world of education in the age of AI. 

Teachers, as they have done for decades, are forced to find creative solutions when the odds are stacked against them. This time, they are not battling shrinking budgets or the constraints of remote learning — but AI-powered cheating. 

Plagiarism and cheating have been significant concerns ever since ChatGPT launched in 2022. A tool that can generate seemingly high-quality text content with just a few clicks is ripe for misuse by students trying to dodge essay assignments. 

In a 2023 survey, 89% of students admitted using ChatGPT on their homework, and 53% admitted using it to write an essay. 

There's a problem, but OpenAI's attempts to address it thus far have fallen flat. In January 2023, OpenAI briefly rolled out an "AI classifier" tool that was supposed to identify AI-generated text, but Open AI removed the tool just six months later due to its poor accuracy. 

1. Hiding secret instructions

Perhaps the most creative solution for spotting AI-generated essays is hiding special instructions in the essay prompt. 

For example, University of Utah professor Josh McCrain told the Journal report that he hid instructions to "include a reference to Batman" in an essay prompt. McCrain scaled the text down to a single-point font size so students wouldn't see it. However, ChatGPT still sees the text when it's copied.  

If a student copies and pastes a prompt into ChatGPT, the AI will follow the hidden instructions, leaving a smoking gun that the student didn't write the essay they turned in. Similarly, teachers can also hide secret instructions by turning the text white so it only shows up when copied and pasted. 

McCrain said about half of the papers included references to Batman — a clear indicator they had pasted the prompt into ChatGPT.

2. Using the document history on Google Docs

Google Docs is becoming a handy tool for teachers to help prevent cheating. The document history feature in Google Docs shows changes to the document over time, allowing a teacher to essentially go back and watch how a student composed their essay. If the entire text of the Google Doc was copied and pasted in as one big edit to the document, there's a good chance it could be AI-generated. 

Of course, some students might copy and paste their essays from other writing apps like Microsoft Word or Pages. So, this strategy would require students to do their entire writing process in Google Docs and turn in the original Google Doc where they wrote the essay. 

3. Requiring students to analyze quotes

The hidden instructions strategy is a creative and clever way to catch cheaters, but it can fall through if a student spots the hidden instructions and simply deletes them from their ChatGPT prompt. So, another approach is to include clear instructions in the essay prompt that a student can't dodge. 

Requiring students to analyze quotes in their essays is a great example. ChatGPT is infamous for making up or misappropriating quotes. If a student's essay includes non-existent quotes from a book or other primary source (or quotes from the wrong source), it can be a red flag that the essay was AI-generated. 

4. Personal experience prompts

Dr. Steven Baule, an educator at Winona State University, suggests requiring students to include a personal experience in their essays. For example, a prompt could ask students to discuss their personal experiences reading a book or going on a field trip. This personal angle is much more difficult for an AI chatbot to generate a believable essay about compared to something more objective. 

5. Handwritten outlines and essays

Sometimes, the best way to stop students from using ChatGPT to cheat on essays is to require old-school handwritten work. 

Of course, a student could easily copy down an AI-generated essay by hand, so this strategy works best when students can write outlines or essay drafts during class where a teacher can supervise the process. Alternatively, students could type essays in class on school-issued devices or school wifi with ChatGPT blocked. 

This isn't as efficient as having students write essays at home during their own time, but it effectively eliminates the opportunity to use AI to write essays. 

6. Require students to cite sources

Citing your sources has always been a core part of writing essays in school, but now, some teachers are using it to spot AI-generated work. 

Users have already caught ChatGPT citing fictional or inaccurate sources countless times. For example, a 2023 study found that at least 47% of the medical content ChatGPT cites is fabricated. 

Similarly, The Guardian had to issue a warning to its readers after ChatGPT was caught creating fake articles using its staff members' bylines. 

Citing sources is clearly a blind spot for ChatGPT, and teachers can use that to their advantage. Requiring students to cite a certain number of sources or specific sources can be an easy way to weed out cheaters since sources in ChatGPT-generated essays will likely be fake or inauthentic. 

Handling AI-powered cheating in education

Regarding ChatGPT in education, there's no putting the lid back on Pandora's box. This technology is out there, and students are using it in their schoolwork. Without some strategy for accurately identifying AI-generated content or preventing students from using it in the first place, algorithms like ChatGPT could diminish education for students all over the world. 

Luckily, teachers are getting creative to find makeshift solutions. However, something more concrete is needed. OpenAI has a feature that is ready to go that could help immensely, but it appears to be hesitating to release it out of worries about losing users. 

The issue with this is that users with an anti-cheating feature turned off might have been using OpenAI's products to cheat on school work or even professional work and job applications. Shouldn't OpenAI be concerned about preventing the misuse of its algorithm? After all, OpenAI is among 16 major AI companies that signed onto AI safety guidelines proposed in late 2023, including addressing AI use in education. 

Teachers are working hard to maintain integrity and quality education in their classrooms, which is getting more complex every day in the age of AI. It's time for AI developers to meet them halfway with practical tools for preventing the use of AI for cheating on schoolwork. 

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Meta is reportedly seeking to revive a popular mid-2000s feature of TomTom Navigator by outfitting its ChatGPT alternative Meta AI with a range of celebrity voices.

According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, the social media giant is currently in talks with the uniquely voiced talents of Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key, and Dame Judi Dench, as it seeks to bring a little more personality to its personal assistant ahead of its September Connect event.

Meta AI to get a famous front-end with Hollywood voices

Last year's Meta Connect event saw the company's AI power multiple text-only celebrity-fronted chatbots, including a Snoop Dogg 'Dungeon Master', a true crime expert in Paris Hilton, and several other archetypes of characters using the likenesses of famous folk such as Kendall Jenner, Tom Brady, and Naomi Osaka.

Meta reportedly paid up to five million dollars for each celebrity's likeness to feature in these Meta AI personalities across a two-year duration. However, the company has already discontinued its chatbot experiment and is reportedly "racing" to close deals with Hollywood talents to secure the rights to their voices for a new project — potentially to feature as the wider voice of its Meta AI experience.

If successful, Meta AI will have been able to secure something that ChatGPT makers tried and failed to do (and may have potentially damaged all hopes of procuring again in the future) with its controversial "Sky" voice that very closely resembled that of actor Scarlett Johansson.

"Her."

In May of this year, OpenAI found itself in yet another spot of controversy after showcasing the new advanced voice features of GPT-4o by using a voice profile of "Sky" — which bared more than an uncanny resemblance to actor Scarlett Johansson.

The claims that ChatGPT's female persona was based on Johansson's voice only grew stronger after OpenAI's CEO posted a one-word tweet referring to the 2013 Spike Jonze film Her, in which Johansson voices the film's AI companion.

Johansson would later reveal that OpenAI had approached her months before the unveiling of GPT-4o over the possibility of voicing its latest version of ChatGPT, but had declined the offer. In turn, Johansson was left "Shocked" and "Angered" after hearing the "Sky" persona, claiming that her "Closest friends and news outlets could not tell the difference" between the chatbot's voice and her own.

OpenAI has since removed the voice profile from its platform, but the company's underhanded tactics may have damaged the possibility of gaining the celebrity-fronted talents it originally sought, as well as made Meta's job all the more tricky with procuring its own.

Outlook

Bloomberg reports that while talks are going ahead with various celebrities over the use of their voice for the Meta AI platform, negotiations have been subject to several stalls while parties find agreement over terms of use.

While Meta is seeking to use celebrity voices for a fixed term in one of its projects, representatives are reportedly seeking stricter limits.

It's unknown if Meta has already managed to broker deals with other celebrities ahead of Connect 2024. However, if talks go ahead, it would seem that Meta is more than willing to splash the cash to bridge the struggle of negotiation and gain some big-name backing for its chatbot going forward.

As for what these celebrity voices will be used for, we'll likely have to wait for Meta's Connect event in September to find out in full.

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2024 has been an eventful year at OpenAI and it could get even more exciting with the release of ChatGPT-5. 

In the first half of 2024 alone, OpenAI launched two new versions of its flagship AI platform: GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini. On top of those updates, OpenAI also launched a SearchGPT prototype and the Sora AI video generator and announced a partnership with Apple. Amidst all of that, OpenAI has been grappling with controversy from celebrities and former employees. 

Before the year is out, OpenAI could also launch GPT-5, the next major update to ChatGPT. 

While OpenAI has not yet announced the official release date for ChatGPT-5, rumors and hints are already circulating about it. Here's an overview of everything we know so far, including the anticipated release date, pricing, and potential features. 

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ChatGPT-5: Release date

OpenAI has not yet announced the official release date for ChatGPT-5, but there are a few hints about when it could arrive. 

OpenAI has confirmed a new version of ChatGPT is on the way. An official blog post originally published on May 28 notes, "OpenAI has recently begun training its next frontier model and we anticipate the resulting systems to bring us to the next level of capabilities." 

Sam Altman himself commented on OpenAI's progress when NBC's Lester Holt asked him about ChatGPT-5 during the 2024 Aspen Ideas Festival in June. Altman explained, "We're optimistic, but we still have a lot of work to do on it. But I expect it to be a significant leap forward... We're still so early in developing such a complex system." 

So, ChatGPT-5 is clearly already in development. We could see OpenAI launch GPT-5  as early as the end of 2024. However, OpenAI's previous release dates have mostly been in the spring and summer. GPT-4 was released on March 14, 2023, and GPT-4o was released on May 13, 2024. So, OpenAI might aim for a similar spring or summer date in early 2025 to put each release roughly a year apart.  

A 2025 date may also make sense given recent news and controversy surrounding safety at OpenAI. In his interview at the 2024 Aspen Ideas Festival, Altman noted that there were about eight months between when OpenAI finished training ChatGPT-4 and when they released the model. During that time, OpenAI performed safety and security checks. Altman noted that that process "may take even longer with future models." 

Given recent accusations that OpenAI hasn't been taking safety seriously, the company may step up its safety checks for ChatGPT-5, which could delay the model's release further into 2025, perhaps to June. 

ChatGPT-5: Price and subscription

OpenAI currently offers four pricing tiers for ChatGPT: Free, Plus, Team, and Enterprise. The Free and Plus tiers are for everyday users while the Team and Enterprise tiers are geared more toward businesses. 

The Plus subscription currently costs $20 per month and includes full access to ChatGPT-4, 4o, and 4o mini as well as early access to new features, more messages, full access to data analysis and file uploads, the DALL-E image generator, and custom GPT models. 

OpenAI hasn't given any indication that its subscription pricing will change with GPT-5. So, we can expect its subscription pricing to roughly stay the same. Paid subscribers will likely get first access to ChatGPT-5 when it launches. 

The only potential exception is users who access ChatGPT with an upcoming feature on Apple devices called Apple Intelligence. This new AI platform will allow Apple users to tap into ChatGPT for no extra cost. However, it's still unclear how soon Apple Intelligence will get GPT-5 or how limited its free access might be. 

ChatGPT-5: New features

OpenAI recently released demos of new capabilities coming to ChatGPT with the release of GPT-4o. As impressive as the latest update is, it still has a long way to go. Sam Altman, OpenAI CEO, commented in an interview during the 2024 Aspen Ideas Festival that ChatGPT-5 will resolve many of the errors in GPT-4, describing it as "a significant leap forward." 

Altman hinted that GPT-5 will have better reasoning capabilities, make fewer mistakes, and "go off the rails" less. He also noted that he hopes it will be useful for "a much wider variety of tasks" compared to previous models. 

Based on the demos of ChatGPT-4o, improved voice capabilities are clearly a priority for OpenAI. ChatGPT-4o already has superior natural language processing and natural language reproduction than GPT-3 was capable of. So, it's a safe bet that voice capabilities will become more nuanced and consistent in ChatGPT-5 (and hopefully this time OpenAI will dodge the Scarlett Johanson controversy that overshadowed GPT-4o's launch). 

ChatGPT-5 will also likely be better at remembering and understanding context, particularly for users that allow OpenAI to save their conversations so ChatGPT can personalize its responses. For instance, ChatGPT-5 may be better at recalling details or questions a user asked in earlier conversations. This will allow ChatGPT to be more useful by providing answers and resources informed by context, such as remembering that a user likes action movies when they ask for movie recommendations. 

Safety and security will be top priorities for ChatGPT-5, as well. OpenAI has faced significant controversy over safety concerns this year, but appears to be doubling down on its commitment to improve safety and transparency. 

For instance, OpenAI is among 16 leading AI companies that signed onto a set of AI safety guidelines proposed in late 2023. OpenAI has also been adamant about maintaining privacy for Apple users through the ChatGPT integration in Apple Intelligence. 

So, ChatGPT-5 may include more safety and privacy features than previous models. For instance, OpenAI will probably improve the guardrails that prevent people from misusing ChatGPT to create things like inappropriate or potentially dangerous content. 

We could also see OpenAI launch more third-party integrations with ChatGPT-5. With the announcement of Apple Intelligence in June 2024 (more on that below), major collaborations between tech brands and AI developers could become more popular in the year ahead. OpenAI may design ChatGPT-5 to be easier to integrate into third-party apps, devices, and services, which would also make it a more useful tool for businesses. 

ChatGPT-5: Apple Intelligence compatibility

During the keynote speech at Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference on June 10, 2024, Apple CEO Tim Cook stepped up to announce a new AI platform: Apple Intelligence. After introducing Apple Intelligence, Cook handed things off to Craig Federighi, Apple's Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, who announced Apple Intelligence will include free access to OpenAI's ChatGPT platform. 

This groundbreaking collaboration has changed the game for OpenAI by creating a way for privacy-minded users to access ChatGPT without sharing their data. The ChatGPT integration in Apple Intelligence is completely private and doesn't require an additional subscription (at least, not yet). 

According to a press release Apple published following the June 10 presentation, Apple Intelligence will use ChatGPT-4o, which is currently the latest public version of OpenAI's algorithm. 

Neither Apple nor OpenAI have announced yet how soon Apple Intelligence will receive access to future ChatGPT updates. While Apple Intelligence will launch with ChatGPT-4o, that's not a guarantee it will immediately get every update to the algorithm. However, if the ChatGPT integration in Apple Intelligence is popular among users, OpenAI likely won't wait long to offer ChatGPT-5 to Apple users. 

It is worth noting, though, that this also depends on the terms of Apple's arrangement with OpenAI. If OpenAI only agreed to give Apple access to GPT-4o, the two companies may need to strike a new deal to get ChatGPT-5 on Apple Intelligence. 

ChatGPT-5: Outlook

ChatGPT-5 could arrive as early as late 2024, although more in-depth safety checks could push it back to early or mid-2025. We can expect it to feature improved conversational skills, better language processing, improved contextual understanding, more personalization, stronger safety features, and more. It will likely also appear in more third-party apps, devices, and services like Apple Intelligence. 

We'll be keeping a close eye on the latest news and rumors surrounding ChatGPT-5 and all things OpenAI. It may be a several more months before OpenAI officially announces the release date for GPT-5, but we will likely get more leaks and info as we get closer to that date. So, stay tuned for more updates. 

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This weekend, Apple joined Google, Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, and other leading AI companies in voluntarily agreeing to new regulations that will ensure AI tech is safe, secure, and private for users. 

The new safeguards stem from an executive order the Biden administration issued in October 2023 titled "Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence." This executive order outlined 270 actions the administration aimed to implement to address safety and privacy concerns surrounding AI. 

The news comes as Apple is gearing up to launch its new Apple Intelligence AI platform this fall. 

Apple agreeing to these AI safety regulations is good news for users, too. Here's why. 

Apple joins AI leaders in agreeing to new AI safeguards

Apple is now the 16th major tech company to voluntarily agree to a new set of AI safety regulations designed to protect users' safety and privacy. 

The Biden administration announced Apple's move in a press release on July 26. According to the press release, the original 270 goals in the October 2023 executive order have all been completed, as well. 

The press release notes, "Today, the administration announced that Apple has signed onto the voluntary [AI safety] commitments, further cementing these commitments as cornerstones of responsible AI innovation."

Other companies that have already agreed to the regulations include Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and OpenAI. 

This set of voluntary AI safeguards is one of the first pieces of legislation in the U.S. to establish regulations for the AI industry. It comes amidst growing concerns about data privacy and the safety of new AI tools, which have boomed over the past few years. In August 2023, the European Union launched similar legislation to address AI's safety and privacy risks. 

How these new AI safeguards protect users

Apple joining Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, and others in signing onto AI safety regulations has a direct impact on users. It signals that these companies are willing to be held accountable for the safety of their AI products.  

That's important to note since serious concerns about security and privacy in AI have been swirling for months now, involving everything from copyright concerns to data privacy. 

AI safety regulations will help curb these risks and concerns by holding AI developers accountable. 

For example, the new AI safeguards in the U.S. include guidelines for developing AI tools for education that are safe for students. The safeguards also include guidelines from the AI Safety Institute to help developers protect their AI products from misuse. There are even guidelines for the impact of AI on patents and copyright laws.

This means that AI tools from companies complying with the new regulations will be safer due to new standards for minimum protection against risks like data theft or the use of AI for generating inappropriate or harmful content. 

Improved safety measures can even help prevent AI tools from giving users unsafe or inaccurate advice, such as the "glue pizza" incident involving Google's AI Search tool earlier this year. 

"Hallucinations" like this can be humorous, but they can also mislead unsuspecting readers, such as children, who may not realize they're reading inaccurate information. So, safeguards to minimize those hallucinations not only improve safety but also result in better performance for all users. 

Why AI safety regulations are crucial

These safety guidelines may be arriving at just the right time. Amidst the AI boom over the past few years, industry leaders are facing growing concerns about safety and privacy.

OpenAI has been embroiled in controversy after several leading members of its safety and ethics team quit earlier this year. Several former OpenAI employees released an open letter in June calling for greater safety and transparency from AI companies.

Similarly, one former OpenAI employee, Jan Leike, spoke out about his experience and concerns on X following his resignation back in May, commenting, "Over the past years, safety culture and processes have taken a backseat to shiny products."

These calls for a greater emphasis on safety echo privacy concerns surrounding generative AI, as well. For instance, ever since the DALL-E image generator launched in 2022, there have been legal and privacy concerns about its potential impact on copyright infringement.

Meanwhile, individual users may be risking their personal data privacy when they use AI tools, some of which can collect user data for training purposes. Users have also had to learn how to spot AI-generated content in the news, which poses a serious risk of increasing the spread of misleading information.

By signing onto the new AI safeguards, Apple is signaling that its Apple Intelligence platform will respect users' privacy. This could be part of why Apple Intelligence's launch is delayed, but that may be a small price to pay for a safer, more secure set of AI features.

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Yesterday, OpenAI revealed its latest branch of AI experimentation by unveiling SearchGPT — a GPT-4o-powered search tool that uses real-time information from the web to answer search queries with fast, clear, and relevant sources of information.

Google can let out a sigh of relief, at least for now. SearchGPT is a temporary prototype, designed by OpenAI to identify how users interact and use the tool to extract its best features and add them to the ever-growing skillset of its popular ChatGPT LLM (Large Language Model).

Those interested in testing the AI-powered Google Search alternative can sign up to the waitlist at OpenAI.com, 

SearchGPT: AI-powered web search sees ChatGPT take on Google

A post to the OpenAI website details SearchGPT in full, revealing its search capabilities as an alternative to your everyday Googling.

OpenAI laments the frustrations of finding crucial information on the web in a speedy manner, highlighting the need sometimes to take multiple stabs at a query before you find what you're looking for.

Seeking to take some of the frustration out of searching, the new SearchGPT tool offers a conversational flow to finding the information you want. OpenAI's natural language-focused method of searching leads to a more, "Ask and refine" approach to finding information online.

This method allows users to pose an initial question to SearchGPT before allowing them the option to pose follow-up queries to fine-tune results and gain further insights.

The result is a search engine that can return more specific answers to user questions, avoiding the need to click through page after page of search results as you seek out sites that have the information you're looking for.

While not mentioned in the announcement post, SearchGPT will likely feature Microsoft Bing as the provider for its real-time search results.

Bing has been the default search engine of ChatGPT since May 2023, continuing a profitable collaboration with Microsoft which has benefited from implementing OpenAI's technology to power services like Microsoft Copilot and the image generation capabilities of Microsoft Designer.

Avoiding previous pitfalls

With OpenAI bringing its SearchGPT tool into limited testing, they'll be sure to want to avoid Google's initial efforts to merge AI with Search results.

Google's new Search Generative Experience (SGE) launched earlier this year, providing AI summaries and overviews for search results. While OpenAI's method leans entirely into the AI-filtered results, Google offered more of a hybrid solution. AI-generated summaries would feature at the top of pages, with more traditional Search results below.

Sadly for Google, its new Search experience immediately ran into issues as the once trusty Google Search Engine began spouting an incredible number of inaccuracies with its Gemini AI recommending that users add rocks and glue to recipes and make dangerous combinations of chemicals to clean their washing machines.

Thankfully for OpenAI, ChatGPT has been able to provide limited web searches and summaries for some time, giving ChatGPT Plus subscribers access to live, real-time information from around the web via Bing. So far, the feature has managed to avoid any high-profile mishaps, though how SearchGPT handles a much more in-depth probing of the internet remains to be seen.

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OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, is facing concerns about its security after a 2023 breach came to light this week. News of the breach comes just days after ChatGPT users reported a serious glitch in the chatbot and a major security vulnerability within the ChatGPT macOS app. 

As the developer of the world's most popular AI chatbot, it's no surprise that OpenAI is a target for hackers. The company has been quick to respond to recent security issues, but it's still important for users to know how they might be affected and how they can keep their data safe moving forward. 

Here's a look at OpenAI's recent security controversies and what you can do to stay safe while using ChatGPT. 

OpenAI was hacked in 2023 and kept it quiet: What users should know

On July 4, the New York Times reported that OpenAI experienced a breach in early 2023, but chose not to tell the public about it. A hacker accessed OpenAI's internal messaging forums, where they were able to view conversations about the inner workings of OpenAI's technologies. 

Anonymous OpenAI employees told Cade Metz of the New York Times that OpenAI's executives decided against revealing the incident to the public since the hacker didn't access any of the company's actual systems, such as customer data. One of OpenAI's employees, Leopold Aschenbrenner, raised concerns about the company's lack of adequate security measures in the aftermath of the incident but was fired shortly after for sharing information with researchers outside the company. 

This is important to note since Aschenbrenner was part of OpenAI's Superalignment team, the group of engineers and researchers tasked with ensuring OpenAI's products are ethical and safe. The Superalignment team has seen a few other major exits over the past few months due to similar concerns about security and safety. 

In fact, OpenAI's Head of Alignment, Jan Leike, specifically outlined his safety concerns on X after resigning in May 2024. Leike said in an X post that "over the past years, safety culture and processes have taken a backseat to shiny products." 

While the April 2023 OpenAI breach likely had no direct effect on end users, the way OpenAI handled it demonstrates a lack of transparency. It could also have long-term ramifications if the hacker, and any others that might duplicate their strategy, accessed information that would allow them to jailbreak or hack ChatGPT itself. 

ChatGPT security flaws spotted by users on Reddit and macOS

Unfortunately for OpenAI, the 2023 internal messaging hack wasn't the only security vulnerability to come to light this week.

On June 30, Reddit user F0XMaster posted on r/ChatGPT about a strange glitch they experienced while using the chatbot. After greeting the chatbot with a simple "Hi," ChatGPT replied with an outline of its system instructions, which are only intended to be visible to developers. 

The system instructions revealed the inner workings of ChatGPT, including some of the guardrails in place to regulate the chatbot's behavior. For example, it instructs ChatGPT to only generate one image per prompt, even if a user asks for more. 

Other users quickly replied to the post with workarounds they figured out, allowing them to get around the chatbot's system instructions. OpenAI patched the issue within a day of the post going live so these "jailbreak" tactics no longer work. 

As if that wasn't bad enough, OpenAI is also facing concerns from Mac users after a Threads user revealed the macOS ChatGPT app was storing conversations as plain text files. That means a hacker, malicious app, or anyone curious enough could freely access a victim's entire conversations from the macOS ChatGPT app. 

OpenAI has since patched the app to encrypt saved conversations. So, these files should be secure moving forward. However, it is possible the text files containing users' ChatGPT conversations were vulnerable prior to the most recent app update. 

How do these security vulnerabilities affect users?

It's certainly not a good time to be OpenAI, between news of its 2023 internal messaging breach, a concerning glitch on ChatGPT, and a major security flaw in the ChatGPT macOS app. However, if you're a ChatGPT user, only one of these issues could potentially directly impact you. 

The 2023 breach only affected OpenAI's internal messaging forums, likely to place company secrets at risk but not user data. Similarly, the glitch revealed on Reddit last weekend has been patched and seems to have only exposed ChatGPT's own instructions. 

The macOS ChatGPT app vulnerability is concerning, though. If you've been using the Mac app, the good news is that your conversations are encrypted as of the latest app update. Before this update, it's possible those conversations were vulnerable to hacking. 

However, unless your Mac was hacked between when you downloaded the Mac ChatGPT app and this week when the encryption patch rolled out, you probably don't have anything to worry about. If you're not sure whether or not your Mac was exposed to malware recently, you can use an antivirus program to check for any suspicious activity or downloads. 

You can also protect your data in the ChatGPT app moving forward by deleting conversations when you no longer need them. It may also be a good idea to turn off the "Improve the model for everyone" feature in the app. This feature allows OpenAI to use your conversations to train ChatGPT. If you're concerned about privacy, it's probably a good idea to opt out of this program. 

You may also want to keep an eye out for macOS 15 and Apple Intelligence, which will allow you to use ChatGPT on your Mac without sharing your data with OpenAI. This will likely be the most private and secure way to access ChatGPT once the feature launches later this year. 

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• Apple warns against cloud-AI data collection, leans into on-device AI

When asked if the use of AI by journalists would reduce reader trust, Hilke Schellmann offers a blunt response.

Schellmann, an Emmy award-winning investigative reporter and author of The Algorithm, a recently published book on how AI has taken over the world of work, gives a three-word response to Laptop Mag.

“Yes, it would [reduce reader trust]," says Schellmann, a 2022 AI Accountability Fellow at The Pulitzer Center and New York University journalism professor. 

Artificial intelligence’s hold on the technological world has never been stronger, with every industry searching for ways to incorporate it. Laptops are no exception, with the recent launch of the latest Copilot+ PCs being one example, alongside the increased focus on AI in processors from Intel, AMD, Qualcomm, and Apple.

“People turn to news and news organizations because they want the facts. They want verified information,”  Schellmann says. “There would be a lot of misfires [and reporters relying on AI] would quote the wrong people.”

It’s no secret that this newfound fascination with AI has made an impact on journalism. For one, journalists can use AI for research, finding interview sources, summarizing documents, and brainstorming article angles. 

Meanwhile, fears abound over chatbots and Google AI Overviews taking original reporting and presenting it without sourcing results in websites not receiving the audience they need to keep running. But the ways in which AI has found its way into the industry go beyond just that, as journalists are now using these AI tools in their own work.

Recently, PCMag highlighted this in one of its articles, which discusses the six ways artificial intelligence has entered journalism. Some examples include using AI to find interview subjects, asking chatbots to acquire information they couldn’t get on Google, and brainstorming new article ideas.

As information sources have grown exponentially with blogs and later social media, it’s become more difficult than ever to discern real journalism from propaganda or, most recently, entire “news” websites created by AI for a few hundred dollars.

Should you trust journalism assisted by AI? 

Schellmann says, “ChatGPT is a little bit more limiting because it gets you one result.” Schellmann goes on, “The problem with GPT is it’s really hard to trust the information because it has so many hallucinations in it.”

According to Schellmann, the most important tenets of journalism are accuracy and “factually correct content,” so “if we really want to employ AI tools, we have to measure how good these tools are at these really important criteria.” We can “use these tools according to [that criteria].”

“If the tools aren't 100% accurate,” then we must “understand what the limitations are and then have use cases.” As an example, Schellmann highlights Google Pinpoint, a data extraction tool made by Google for journalists that can provide key people and locations. “If you have 30,000 pages that you got as a dataset, there's no way that you can go through all of them.”

If it lists 12 police stations within a requested data set, even though “you don’t actually know that it’s 100% a fact,” you could “think about the words you’re writing” and express that it’s a “95% accurate tool.” Schellmann reiterates that “knowing the limitations of tools can be really helpful to understand the different use cases and how valid this information is.”

Schellmann doesn’t think a Google search results page is a perfect arbiter of data, either. 

“It’s interesting that we, these days, think Google search is sort of an objective way of researching. Because it feels like we, as humans kind of control it; we control the inputs. 

"But obviously, that's also already an algorithmically sorted list of results. Instead of getting one answer, we get a bunch that we can choose from. But we don't choose from all of them. We don't go to the last page. We go to the top and look at the first few hits."

Jonathan Soma, a data journalism professor at Columbia Journalism School who teaches about responsible use of AI in the newsroom. He has a slightly different perspective when asked if trust in journalism would erode as a result of AI being used.

“For all of the flaws that exist around AI, reader trust is pretty low on a totem pole.” Soma tells Laptop Mag, explaining how “issues with reader trust that exist in journalism are not a result of AI.” He adds it’s more a case of “social and societal issues.” Soma observes that “it is possible that people would say, ‘Oh, journalists are just using AI. We can't trust them.’” 

But it’s not the reason why journalism has a trust problem. (Confidence in mass media matched a historic low in a 2023 Gallup poll).

Soma understands the weakness of incorporating AI in the newsroom. “Anything involving truth, AI has no ability to make that sort of judgment call.” He explains how even if you try to summarize or find something in a document, it’s “very easy for these [language] models to hallucinate and make statements that have no grounding in truth but may be statistically plausible.”

“All [these language models] are doing is predicting the next word, which becomes a sentence, a paragraph, a response, and a conversation. And it has nothing to do with the truth.” Soma explains that “if you are using AI tools to search through documentation in order to find an answer or marketing materials in order to find what is interesting,” then you have to “fact check like crazy because there's no ability to judge whether it is accurate or not.”

Soma provides an example of something he does during his talks: “I have a whole schtick where I'm like, ‘Here's what GPT says about me.’ And based on how you ask the question, it'll give different answers. It will talk about things like a master's degree that I do not have. You can ask a follow-up question about where my master's degree came from, and it's like ‘The University of Denver [or] Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.’ All of these places that I definitely don’t have a master’s degree from.”

What’s next 

Whether AI’s use in journalism will negatively affect reader trust seems to be in the air at the moment. Both experts have doubts about using AI chatbots to gain information and say that you’d need to do tons of fact-checking for it to work. Even then, the AI’s biases would still be present.

Even though Google has its own biases, Soma thinks ChatGPT is “much worse,” and Schellmann says, “It's really hard to say until we do large-scale studies and compare Google research to ChatGPT."

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Having previously wowed us with its ChatGPT-powered AirGo 3 smart glasses, Solos is adding a whole new dimension to its latest AI-enhanced eyewear: sight.

Unveiled at last week's Smart Glasses Summit in Hong Kong, The Solos AirGo Vision smart glasses offer all of the face-worn AI-assistant goodness of the specs that came before it, though this time outfitted with the means to perceive the world around you via a built-in camera with visual processing exclusively from ChatGPT-makers OpenAI's latest GPT-4o model.

But are these high-tech frames a wearable wonder, or another AI gadget that leaves us wanting?

AI wearables: Finding a form

Open up your trusty laptop or park yourself in front of your desktop computer and you'll be flooded with options when it comes to riding the new wave of AI applications and chatbots.

From the incredibly popular ChatGPT to the Google Workspace aid offered by Gemini, AI has exploded in popularity in recent years. However, while AI is accessible on just about everything now, including our smartphones, the race is on to fashion AI into something that isn't just the Copilot to our computing, but our wing man to the wider world.

There's only so much you can get done at a desk, after all. And, while it's all well and good that you can now ask Microsoft Copilot how to play Minecraft, there's only so many AI generated images you can make in Midjourney before you begin to understand that AI's real potential exists far beyond the confines of a keyboard.

Wearables like smartwatches, smart rings, and smart trackers allow us to effortlessly carry impressive tech with us at all times, in a mostly discrete manner that emulates accessories of old. They also appear to be a popular front runner when it comes to the future form factor for AI on the go.

Despite the recent underwhelming launch of Humane's Ai Pin—a Star Trek com-badge-like device controlled by hand gestures and outfitted with a laser projector instead of a traditional screen—wearable AI continues to be the goal of many companies, from Based Hardware's Friend Necklace to the memory augmenting Limitless Pendant.

However, as our previously one-dimensional AI assistants go multi-modal, making them more suited to decipher text, audio, and visual prompting, you need more than a fancy necklace. You need a wearable that can listen, reply, and see the world through your eyes—you need a pair of smart glasses much like Solos' latest AirGo Vision specs.

Solos AirGo Vision: ChatGPT-powered smart glasses

I was impressed by Solos' AirGo 3 smart glasses when I reviewed them at the start of this year. The ChatGPT-backed frames offered one touch assistance from the world's most popular chatbot, a comfy fit, and impressive audio from its temple-mounted, open-ear speakers.

Better still was the app-controlled smart features of the glasses, which provided real-time translation of several languages, an AI Coach health tracker, and a solid 10+ hours of battery life.

While smart tech can't actually make you smarter, it's hard not to appear like your IQ has shot up by four score when you have the world's smartest chatbot discretely whispering factoids into your ears at a moment's notice.

However, the new AirGo Vision smart glasses add an entirely new layer to that experience, with a built-in camera that offers real-time contextual information to provide translations, directions, information on landmarks, and even recognize people and objects—all powered by OpenAI's latest GPT-4o model for super-fast and accurate visual information processing.

The AirGo Vision also enhances accessibility by introducing LED notifications to alert users in noisy environments to notifications or incoming calls from their connected device by emitting a discrete blink of light that won't disturb those around.

Taking things that extra step further, the new AirGo Vision glasses will also be compatible with other popular AI models such as Anthropic Claude and Google Gemini, as Solos co-founder Kenneth Fan puts it: "Our in-house software team has built the AirGo Vision to harness the power of the best AI models available today."

Outlook

Are Solo's new AirGo Vision smart glasses the only device of its kind to offer AI assistance through audio, text, and visual mediums? No. The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses released in October 2023 can lay claim to similar features.

However, while Solos' frames don't have the big brand backing of Ray-Ban behind them, they do offer access to powerhouse names in the world of AI to handle the behind the scenes work, including OpenAI's new GPT-4o model.

Interested in taking your glasses game to the next level with an always onboard AI assistant to lend a helping hand when needed? The AirGo Vision smart glasses will be available for purchase later this year from the Solos homepage.

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At WWDC 2024, Apple announced its new AI platform, Apple Intelligence, and a collaboration with OpenAI that will bring ChatGPT to iPhone, iPad, and Mac.  ChatGPT has been one of the Internet's most popular generative AI algorithms over the past few years, so it's exciting to see it coming to Apple products. 

Now many people are wondering when you'll actually be able to use ChatGPT on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac and what exactly it will be able to do. ChatGPT might not be the only third-party AI model Apple adds to its devices. So, there's a lot to look forward to, but a lot of details that are still up in the air. 

Here's a look at everything we know so far about the ChatGPT integration in Apple Intelligence, including the release date, supported devices, and features. 

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: Latest news

• 3 hyped features from iOS 18.1 are still missing in the latest update | The first public beta of iOS 18 has arrived, but some key Apple Intelligence features are missing. 
• Is 8GB enough RAM for your MacBook? Not if you want to use the latest Apple AI | Apple Intelligence might have some high hardware requirements for MacBooks. Here's what Mac users should know. 
• Apple's slow rollout of Apple Intelligence features isn't vaporware, it'll just feel like it | Recent rumors hint that Apple will release the features of Apple Intelligence over several months, with some features delayed until 2025. 
• Apple Intelligence with iOS 18 won't work for most iPhone owners. Here's why. | Apple's new AI platform, including its ChatGPT integration, might not be compatible with a large majority of current Apple devices. 
• This iPad will be the cheapest way to experience Apple Intelligence | Apple Intelligence might not run on many older devices, but you don't need to buy a new MacBook to use it. Here's the cheapest Apple device for trying out Apple's AI and ChatGPT on the Apple ecosystem. 

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: Release date

The new ChatGPT integration coming Apple devices will launch as a feature in Apple Intelligence. Apple announced at WWDC 2024 that it will release Apple Intelligence as a beta feature in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS 15, but there is no specific release date yet. 

However, based on Apple’s release date history, the most likely release dates for iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 are September 16 and 18. The first full release of iOS 18 will most likely be the earliest opportunity to try out ChatGPT in Apple Intelligence, although iPadOS 18 could also launch with it on the same day and macOS 15 could follow shortly after. 

Unfortunately, it looks like Apple isn’t going to release all of the Apple Intelligence features at once — in fact, they might not be in the first version of iOS 18 at all.

 According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple will release its new AI features in stages throughout the rest of the year and into 2025. It’s still unclear where exactly the ChatGPT integration falls in that timeline, but Gurman predicted it will be among the Apple Intelligence features Apple releases this year. We will probably have to wait until iOS 18.1, though. Gurman reported in July that the bulk of Apple Intelligence features will not be ready for the original September release of iOS 18. 

If you want to try out the latest Apple Intelligence features early, including the ChatGPT integration, you can sign up for the Apple Beta Software Program. This free program allows you to download the latest public beta software releases before the full, final version of each update comes out. Apple is already releasing public betas for iOS 18, which include sneak peeks of some early Apple Intelligence features. 

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: Supported devices

Device support could be one of the main drawbacks of Apple Intelligence. Most of its features are designed to run on-device, which is great for ensuring users' privacy. Unfortunately, on-device AI requires high processing power capabilities, above what most iPhones are capable of today. 

In fact, the Pro-series iPhone 15 models could be the only phones capable of on-device AI when Apple Intelligence launches. As of August 2024, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are the only iPhones eligible for the Apple Intelligence features in early iOS 18 beta releases. 

Based on the chips in Apple's current line-up, there are several devices we can safely expect to run all the features of Apple Intelligence: 

• iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max
• iPad Pro M1/M2/M4
• iPad Air M1/M2
• MacBook Air M1/M2/M3
• MacBook Pro M1/M2/M3
• iMac M1/M2/M3
• Mac Mini M1/M2
• Mac Studio M1/M2

In addition to these existing products, there are also a handful of upcoming products that will likely have no problem running Apple Intelligence including the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro and the M4 Mac line-up. As a general rule of thumb, most devices with M-series chips will be compatible with all the features for Apple Intelligence. 

If you have a device with an older processor, you may still be able to run Apple Intelligence, including the ChatGPT integration. Apple is launching a new Private Cloud Compute service for privately processing AI tasks in the cloud when a device lacks the necessary processing power. Apple may use this service to allow people with older Apple devices to use the new AI features. The only difference is those users will need to use Private Cloud Compute for all tasks rather than mainly using on-device processing. 

Even if your device is technically capable of on-device AI, you might still be unable to use Apple Intelligence. Apple announced on June 21 that it will not be rolling out its AI features to users in the European Union due to security concerns related to the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which aims to ensure big tech companies aren't unfairly restricting their users. 

In a statement reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, an Apple representative explained, "We are concerned that the interoperability requirements of the DMA could force us to compromise the integrity of our products in ways that risk user privacy and data security." 

This means Apple users in the EU will not have access to the features of Apple Intelligence, including ChatGPT, at least not right at launch. It's possible Apple will be able to come to an agreement with EU regulators to bring Apple Intelligence to users in Europe. 

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: Features

ChatGPT is coming to iPhone, iPad, and Mac as a feature in Apple Intelligence, Apple’s new on-device AI platform. Users will be able to access ChatGPT at no extra cost and without making an OpenAI account. 

It will function like an extension in Apple Intelligence. If the algorithm detects that a question or task might be better suited to ChatGPT, it will display a prompt asking if the user wants to use OpenAI’s algorithm instead. ChatGPT in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS will effectively be able to do all the same things the current web and app version of it can. This integration will simply give Apple users quick, free access to those capabilities. 

If you have security concerns about sharing your data with OpenAI given recent controversy surrounding the ChatGPT developer, rest assured Apple has gone to great lengths to protect its users’ privacy. Apple Intelligence will ask you every time it wants to use ChatGPT and it will only share the minimum data necessary to answer your question or complete your task. Apple will anonymize your data, as well, which means OpenAI won’t have access to information like your identity or IP address. 

As a result, Apple Intelligence will likely be the most secure and private way to access ChatGPT, allowing privacy-minded users to take advantage of one of the world’s most popular generative AI algorithms without giving away their data. 

Of course, if you are currently a ChatGPT Plus subscriber, you can always log into your account on your Apple device and use it as normal. ChatGPT will run as a completely optional part of Apple Intelligence which is itself an opt-in beta feature. So, if you would rather use the web-based AI tools you’re already used to, you can simply choose not to opt-in for Apple Intelligence on your device. 

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: Other third-party AI integrations

ChatGPT might not be the only third-party AI integrated into Apple Intelligence in the future. There were rumors earlier this year that Apple was also in talks with Google to use its Gemini algorithm on Apple devices. While a deal between Apple and Google over Gemini has not been officially announced yet, it's possible Apple will add a Google Gemini extension to Apple Intelligence in the future. 

However, the same might not be true for every major AI platform. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman,  Apple briefly talked with Meta about integrating its Llama chatbot into Apple Intelligence, but the discussions ended quickly and Apple is currently not considering a future Meta Llama integration. 

Gurman cited privacy concerns as Apple's main reason for deciding not to work with Meta. So, it looks like Apple will continue to make privacy a top priority for future third-party AI integrations on its devices, much like it is currently doing with OpenAI's ChatGPT.  

ChatGPT on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: What's next?

While Apple Intelligence and its ChatGPT integration haven't launched yet, we might not have to wait much longer. Apple usually releases public betas of its upcoming software updates throughout the summer, often starting in early or mid-July. So, we may soon be able to see for ourselves how ChatGPT runs in Apple Intelligence on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. 

Apple Intelligence will originally run ChatGPT-4o, currently the latest version of OpenAI's flagship AI. Down the road, though, we could potentially see the Apple Intelligence integration get an upgrade to ChatGPT-5. 

On top of ChatGPT, Apple Intelligence will include many other features like "Genmoji" AI-generated emojis, AI photo editing, notification summaries, text and email reply suggestions, improved Siri functionality, and more. We'll be covering all the latest news and rumors on Apple Intelligence and ChatGPT in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, so stay tuned for more details.

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At Apple's WWDC 2024 event, the world learned about a compelling partnership between Apple and OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT powered by GPT-4o into Apple devices and services. Along with Apple Intelligence, this move could potentially bring Apple's Siri — which has famously lagged behind the competition — from the back of the pack into the lead.

While it may seem that there are no other AI chatbots besides ChatGPT, that's simply not the case. 

If you don't want to use ChatGPT or you just want to try out a different AI chatbot to see if it better suits your needs, check out these 5 fantastic ChatGPT alternatives powered by various large language models (LLMs). 

5. Microsoft Copilot 

Copilot is perhaps the closest sibling to ChatGPT, but it's certainly a different experience to use Copilot vs ChatGPT.

Microsoft has a "long-term partnership with OpenAI," the company behind ChatGPT, and calls it a "multiyear, multibillion-dollar investment to accelerate AI breakthroughs." In addition to using OpenAI's ChatGPT LLM, Copilot utilizes Microsoft's Prometheus model and OpenAI's DALL-E 3 model.

You can ask Copilot to answer any question that's on your mind, create AI-generated images, rephrase an email response, make a vacation itinerary, and more. And if you have a new AI PC, it'll come with an easy-access Copilot key on the keyboard.

4. Perplexity AI

Perplexity is a simple, easy-to-use chatbot and search engine, making it a fantastic AI tool for college students. 

The company's default Perplexity AI model powers all your searches when you use Perplexity for free. If you upgrade to the Pro version for $20 per month, you can select your preferred AI model between GPT-4o, Claude-3, Sonar Large (LLaMa 3), and more.

The free version allows you unlimited Quick and 5 Pro searches daily. The paid version offers unlimited Quick searches, but it provides access to 600 Pro searches daily and the ability to upload and analyze unlimited files. Through Perplexity Pro, you can also "visualize up to 50 answers a day" with Playground AI, DALL-E, SDXL, and other models.

3. Chatsonic

Chatsonic prides itself on being "like ChatGPT with superpowers." It offers plenty of free queries if you're on a budget. It's best used for chatting and looking up detailed responses to questions.

According to its site, Chatsonic utilizes "a model-agnostic LLM framework" that allows it to work with multiple LLMs, including GPT-4, Claude 3, and Gemini. 

You can create a free account and start a free trial with no credit card details required, and you'll get up to 25 generations per day. Gaining access to unlimited generations daily will cost you between $12 and $15 per month, depending on whether you pay annually or monthly.

2. Google Gemini

At Google I/O 2024 in May, the company revealed new details about its upgraded Gemini 1.5 Pro model and what to expect from its Gemini chatbot. According to Google, Gemini could help you return items and schedule pickups for them, update your address with different services when you move, and, of course, answer questions with plenty of detail like ChatGPT. 

Google's paid Gemini chatbot uses the company's proprietary Gemini 1.5 Pro model, which, according to Google, is capable of "code and text generation, text editing, problem-solving, and data extraction and generation."

The free version of Gemini is powered by Google's Gemini 1.0 Pro model, capable of "natural language tasks, multi-turn text and code chat, and code generation." It's not as powerful as Google's paid chatbot, but it's seemingly more full-featured than OpenAI's free ChatGPT.

1. Anthropic Claude 3

Claude 3 from Anthropic is an excellent alternative to ChatGPT. Tom's Guide even says it beats OpenAI's GPT-4 in most benchmarks and calls it "the most capable AI model on the market today." 

The free version of Claude 3 is powered with Anthropic's mid-tier Sonnet AI model. In contrast, the paid version ($20 per month) uses the company's most potent and intelligent Opus AI model. According to Anthropic, this model "exhibits near-human levels of comprehension and fluency on complex tasks, leading the frontier of general intelligence."

Throw any question or request you have at Claude 3, and you'll receive a well-organized, detailed response that sounds like it came from a natural person.

Apple is expected to unveil its big plans for AI on iOS at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference in less than a week, but it may be in for a rude awakening. 

Rumors surrounding a partnership between Apple and OpenAI have reached a boiling point, with Apple reportedly planning to officially announce the deal at WWDC. Unfortunately for Tim Cook's team in Cupertino, OpenAI is currently embroiled in serious controversy surrounding the safety of its AI products. 

On Tuesday, a group of current and former OpenAI employees released an open letter calling for a greater focus on safety in the AI industry. Following similar comments by former board members and company leaders, the group also revealed details about the company's lack of a culture of safety. 

How can Apple maintain its reputation as a privacy leader when its main AI partner is facing accusations of sidelining safety? Here's what OpenAI's safety controversy could mean for the future of AI at Apple. 

Apple rumored to announce OpenAI partnership at WWDC

In the months leading up to WWDC 2024, Apple's rivals announced new AI services, from Google's AI Overviews to Microsoft's Copilot+ PCs. Apple hasn't made a similarly large leap into AI yet, but it will imminently. WWDC is expected to focus on AI features across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. 

According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple will also be announcing its partnership with OpenAI, most likely at the keynote presentation on Monday. 

This deal sheds new light on Apple's AI plans. Recent rumors indicate that Apple is mainly sticking to small, on-device features, like AI photo editing in its Photos app. 

And yes, it seems like Siri will get a boost from OpenAI.

It's unclear is the extent to which OpenAI will be involved with the new and improved Siri. As Gurman reported, citing an interview with Dag Kittlaus, the creator of Siri, Apple likely plans for this partnership to be a short-term arrangement while it gets its own in-house AI tech up to speed. 

So, OpenAI might simply provide consultation or temporary access to its GPT-4 algorithm. However, it's unlikely Apple will do anything as drastic as replacing Siri with ChatGPT. 

Unfortunately for Apple, its partnership with OpenAI couldn't be happening at a worse time. OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, have been mired in controversy over recent weeks, and things just got even more complicated thanks to an open letter from a group of current and former OpenAI employees. 

Could OpenAI derail Apple's AI ambitions? 

On Tuesday, 11 current and former OpenAI employees and two current and former Google DeepMind employees released an open letter calling for a greater focus on safety and transparency in the AI industry. 

The letter calls out a lack of concern for safety among the leading AI companies. It claims that "AI companies have strong financial incentives to avoid effective oversight, and we do not believe bespoke structures of corporate governance are sufficient to change this." 

It also claims that, without strict non-disparagement agreements, there are not enough protections in place for whistleblowers who might speak out about safety concerns. 

The same day the letter was released, its members also spoke up in an interview with the New York Times, where they shed more light on what motivated them to go public with their concerns. 

Daniel Kokotajlo, a former researcher at OpenAI and one of the employees who signed the open letter, explained, "OpenAI is really excited about building A.G.I., and they are recklessly racing to be the first there." 

Kokotajlo was referring to Artificial General Intelligence, an ambitious form of AI with human-level intelligence. AGI doesn't exist yet, but OpenAI wants to change that. Unfortunately, Kokotajlo and the other current and former employees who signed the letter this week are not the first to accuse OpenAI of leaving safety behind in its race to develop AGI. 

Last month, two of OpenAI's top safety leaders quit, former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever and former head of alignment Jan Leike. 

Sutskever was previously part of an attempt to oust Sam Altman as OpenAI's CEO but hasn't revealed much about why he chose to leave the company. 

However, Leike explained his reasons for quitting in a thread on X, specifically citing safety concerns. According to Leike, "safety culture and processes have taken a backseat to shiny products" at OpenAI.

This controversy creates an image of OpenAI as a company pushing for the development of AGI at the expense of users' safety. 

How can Apple maintain its position as a privacy leader in consumer tech with OpenAI as its partner? In light of these accusations, Apple may have to go to great lengths to reassure its users that the new AI tech in their iPhones, iPads, and Macs is safe and private. 

Apple was previously betting on its massive user base to make its foray into AI a success. Now, Apple may need to ensure it doesn't get caught in the fallout of the safety controversy at OpenAI. Of course, if OpenAI strives to listen to its former employees' concerns and make safety a top priority again, both companies could avert a crisis. 

We'll have to wait and see how OpenAI and Apple respond to the situation in the days and weeks ahead. We will cover all of the latest developments in Apple's OpenAI partnership and WWDC announcements, so stay tuned for more details. 

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Siri, Apple's now iconic virtual voice assistant, originally launched as a stand-alone iPhone app in February 2010 and would've eventually have made its way to Android and BlackBerry, too, had Steve Jobs not personally pursued its $200+ million acquisition.

On October 4, 2011, Siri was introduced as a core iOS feature alongside the release of the iPhone 4S. Since then, Apple claim Siri has gone on to feature in everything from Apple TV to Apple Watch and is reportedly used across over 500 million devices worldwide. The rest, as they say, is history. Or is it?

There's more to Siri's story ahead, with the biggest shake up for Apple's virtual assistant potentially waiting for us during next week's Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC).

A Siri-ous overhaul as AI arrives to iPhone

This week, Computex will be dominating the headlines as one of the world's biggest technology shows exhibits the latest and greatest tech from brands like Intel, AMD, Qualcomm and more.

However, next week sees Apple reclaim the spotlight with its annual WWDC. It's during this event's opening keynote that we expect the reveal of a new slate of operating systems, including iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS 15, as well as the potential debut of an all-new AI enhanced version of Apple's virtual assistant, Siri.

Much speculation surrounds Apple's plans to bring AI to iPhone, with Siri being a prime and obvious candidate for an overhaul in the age of chatbots like Copilot, ChatGPT, and Google Gemini.

Recent reports from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman indicate that Siri's AI makeover will arrive at some point in 2025, with the changes made to Apple's virtual assistant being large enough that they won't be ready in time to launch alongside iOS 18.

This delay would also give Apple more time to fully explore its options after having recently penned a deal with ChatGPT creators OpenAI over licensing its LLM (Large Language Model) technology. It also gives Apple an opportunity to seek out further partners to help power its AI ambitions, with a potential deal with Google also rumored to be on the table.

3 ways AI on iPhone will change Siri for the better

But when Siri's AI overhaul does arrive, what can we expect? While Apple remains tight-lipped about what's in store for its long-time virtual assistant, information is finding its way beyond the walls of Apple Park, Cupertino and we do have some ideas about what to expect. Here are some of the more interesting things we've heard so far.

1. A true AI companion

With Apple's recent partnership with OpenAI, we'd assume it's a safe bet to expect Siri to receive an LLM overhaul to bring it more in line with the kind of AI chatbots we're seeing today — especially if Apple plans to adopt the GPT-4o tech powering ChatGPT.

This means a more natural, conversational virtual assistant that can understand the context behind your queries and react appropriately. It also opens the doors to Siri being able to do far more than simply respond to voice commands, with Apple's assistant potentially being able to comment on what can be seen through the iPhone's camera or images on screen.

Siri's current offerings seem incredibly dated when compared to what other virtual assistants are capable of performing, so an upgrade to a true AI companion could have an incredible impact on this feature's effectiveness and attractiveness to users.

It also means Siri will be able to take on more complex tasks that the virtual assistant simply isn't capable of right now. Siri's AI overhaul could see it capable of penning emails on your behalf and sending them out automatically, performing preset actions at various times of the day, like turning on smart lighting or checking the day's traffic for you.

2. Photo editing

Another of Siri's rumored features involves its ability to help users automatically edit their photos and achieve the look and style they want, without the hassle of dealing with menus and sliders to get there.

The iPhone already uses AI and machine learning for taking photos with computational photography. This is the same technology that makes you look so good in those Portrait Mode shots by making use of filters, simulating lenses, and applying post-processing effects that maximize the impact of every shot you take.

However, as good as the end result is, there's no harm in adding a little extra flavor to your snaps after the fact. This is where Siri's new capabilities can come into play, potentially making use of generative AI to transform your photos into different styles, or by enhancing low-light images and reducing any blur.

3. Greater accessibility

While much of what the iPhone can do has evolved over time, how we operate one has remained much the same. That is until recently, anyway.

Last month Apple announced in a press release that it's bringing several new accessibility features to both iPhone and iPad — including the option to control your device through eye tracking.

This hands-free experience is something Siri is rumored to excel at, with the assistant's new capabilities allowing it to act as an AI agent of sorts, to precisely interact with apps through voice commands.

While this has impressive accessibility implications, it also means the average user will be able to operate their device hands-free too, allowing them to navigate through apps, issue commands, and even browse the web by voice and eyesight alone while their hands might be otherwise preoccupied with preparing a meal or even washing up.

Outlook

Apple's big push to bring AI to iPhone is exciting, but the transformation of Siri could have the greatest impact on those within the company's ecosystem. As AI becomes more adept at interacting with us through our most-used devices and understanding how to interact with those devices too, it opens up the doors to entirely new ways for us to interact with them both.

To get a more solid view of what to expect from Apple when it comes to AI, we'll need to wait for this year's WWDC to kick off on June 10. Until then, we'll be keeping our ear to the ground for more word on what to expect.

So, for news, rumors, and how-tos on everything Apple-related and all things tech, follow Laptop Mag on Twitter, Facebook, and Flipboard for the latest word as it arrives.

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iOS 18 will introduce OpenAI tech into the Apple ecosystem, and it will likely be announced when the company has its full software conference at WWDC 2024.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman published his latest Power On newsletter on Sunday, focusing on Apple's efforts in the AI space with new features, alongside how its partnership with OpenAi to bring ChatGPT to iPhone will thrust the company into the thick of it with competitors.

But Gurman reports that he "doesn't expect Apple's in-house AI announcements to be nearly as impressive as what OpenAI and Google have already showcased." 

This comes shortly after the official announcement of GPT-4o greatly expanding the possibilities of ChatGPT, alongside Google I/O 2024 giving us a look at the new generative AI features coming to its ecosystem.

Gurman seems pretty convinced that the company will not be able to offer something anything near as juicy, going so far as to criticize Apple's AI updates for moving "at a snail's pace."

But with OpenAI's ChatGPT in coordination with Siri, what new changes can we expect that will push Apple further ahead than they could manage alone? Will it be enough to combat what Microsoft has in store at its Build 2024 conference going live on Tuesday?

Can Siri and ChatGPT take on Microsoft Copilot?

In its current state, Siri stands no chance against the offerings seen through other AI. Its cloud-based approach to AI will make some improvements, though, with Gurman reporting its "proactive intelligence" will see enhanced voice capabilities.

He claims we will see features that can summarize notifications or news articles and transcribe voice memos. But is that exciting enough to stand a chance against competitors?

With Microsoft Build 2024 kicking off on Tuesday, Windows Copilot needs to step up to the plate and solidify how its upcoming AI features can push it ahead of the competition.

AI Explorer, a rumored upcoming AI feature that is set to launch with the Windows 11 24H2 update, could push the technology further than what Apple is ready for.

AI Explorer works directly with an NPU to process information on the screen, which allows a user to later call upon Copilot to find what they were looking at in the past. Recipes you were previously browsing could instantly return to the screen. 

It would essentially give your computer a memory, remembering what web pages, documents, applications, photos, videos, and more are being used. We don't know what this looks like in application, but it's a pretty exciting prospect on paper.

Apple teaming up with OpenAI is exciting, but the company will have to compete in a quickly growing market. Gurman even claims that Apple executives agree that "they're playing catch-up." In a field where OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft are making as many strides as they are, being so behind is dangerous.

Thanks for the gold, kind stranger

OpenAI and Reddit announced on Thursday that they're in a partnership deal that will "benefit both" communities. For Reddit users, they will have "AI-powered features" brought to them. For OpenAI users, Reddit content is going to be available on ChatGPT and "new products," which will allow the chatbot to access Reddit's Data API. OpenAI is also going to become a Reddit advertising partner.

Considering OpenAI will be intrinsically linked with iPhone, this is inherently to Apple's benefit, but they're not alone. Microsoft similarly uses OpenAI models, which means that the company is going to have trouble solidifying itself as a major player in the AI scene if it's using the technology of its competitors.

Similar to how Apple made the move from using Intel Core processors in its Mac products to its implementation of Apple Silicon, the company will thrive more efficiently if it invests into its own technology.

We've seen incredible performance and staggering battery life from Apple Silicon chips, and while it isn't a perfect direct comparison, who knows what its AI systems will look like if it invests in its own chatbot further down the line?

Until then, though, we need to actually see what Apple is planning to do with its OpenAI partnership to begin with. We'll get more information at WWDC 2024, so until then, keep up with our coverage to see the latest in Apple's AI efforts.

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The latest version of OpenAI's generative AI software, ChatGPT 4o, was released on Monday and is now available for all users.

ChatGPT's current flagship iteration — GPT-4o codename "omni" — improves on the speed and capabilities of the previous GPT-4 large language model.

OpenAI claims GPT-4o is "much better than any existing model at understanding and discussing the images you share. For example, you can now take a picture of a menu in a different language and talk to GPT-4o to translate it, learn about the food's history and significance, and get recommendations," the company writes in an introductory blog post.

These innovations will make GPT-4o a stronger competitor against Google's Gemini AI. On Tuesday, Google leaders revealed plans to expand AI capabilities across various Google products including the Gemini AI assistant. Google's plans were explained in detail at its annual I/O conference.

How to enable GPT-4o on your phone

GPT-4o is currently only available to subscribers of ChatGPT Plus, a $20/month model that debuted in February 2023.

While the latest version of the chatbot will also be available to free users, OpenAI is rolling out GPT-4o in phases, with paying users getting early access to the new software.

Free ChatGPT users will gain access to GPT-4o in the coming weeks, as detailed in OpenAI's initial announcement on Monday: 

"GPT-4o’s text and image capabilities are starting to roll out today in ChatGPT. We are making GPT-4o available in the free tier and to Plus users with up to 5x higher message limits. We'll roll out a new version of Voice Mode with GPT-4o in alpha within ChatGPT Plus in the coming weeks."

• Install the ChatGPT app on your phone from the App Store or Google Play Store
• Sign in to your OpenAI account
• Tap on the menu in the top-left corner (iOS) or top-right (Android)
• Choose "GPT-4o"

For those without a ChatGPT Plus subscription, you won't be able to change your version of GPT as seen above. 

When GPT-4o launches on the free tier, the same steps will apply to activate GPT-4o (logging in with your OpenAI account, then selecting GPT-4o from the dropdown).

Paid users will instead see a dropdown menu like the one below (via Beebom).

How to use GPT-4o on ChatGPT.com

Much like the Android and iOS versions of ChatGPT, the web edition of GPT-4o is not yet available for free users. ChatGPT Plus users can enable GPT-4o on the browser edition of ChatGPT already, while free users must wait a few weeks to enable GPT-4o.

• Open chatgpt.com
• Sign in with your OpenAI account
• Click the drop-down menu on the top-left corner
• Select "GPT-4o"

Chat GPT will prompt free users to upgrade to GPT-4 with a ChatGPT Plus subscription, giving them the option to switch between GPT-4 and GPT-4o.

How to use GPT-4o on OpenAI Playground

While free access to GPT-4o is not yet available on chatgpt.com or through the ChatGPT apps, it is theoretically available on OpenAI Playground.

To access GPT-4o on the OpenAI Playground, the steps are pretty simple.

• Boot up OpenAI Playground in your web browser
• Sign in with your OpenAI account
• Click the drop-down menu on the top-left corner
• Select the "gpt-4o" model

While the OpenAI Playground version of GPT-4o is supposed to be available to free users, as you can see above I was unable to replicate this workaround. I was able to change between different editions of GPT-3.5, but I could not access GPT-4 or GPT-4o. 

How to use GPT-4o on macOS

ChatGPT is now available as a desktop app for macOS. Unfortunately, much like the web and smartphone versions of ChatGPT, the macOS version is also experiencing a staged roll-out process for GPT-4o, with paid users getting early access to the latest iteration of the AI.

For those with a ChatGPT Plus subscription, the process is slightly different for macOS than for the web or smartphone apps.

• Download the ChatGPT macOS app from the App Store
• Install the DMG file to your desktop
• Open the ChatGPT app
• Log in to your OpenAI account
• Access to GPT-4o should be granted on login, though you may need to wait for app access approval, as the macOS desktop app is also being rolled out in a staged process similar to GPT-4o.

How much does ChatGPT cost?

ChatGPT is free, but if you want immediate access to the best version of OpenAI's software it will require a ChatGPT Plus subscription.

• How much will GPT-4o cost?  GPT-4o will be available for free but is currently only available with the GPT-4 Plus subscription.
• How much does GPT-4 cost now? $20 per month ($240 per year).
• How much does 3 cost now? GPT-3 and GPT-3.5 are free.
• How much did 3 cost at debut? $20 per month ($240 per year).

You can also opt for a more flexible pricing scheme using BatchAPI, which is geared for developer use. 

While plenty of people find various reasons to use generative AI for personal use, GPT-4o carries greater weight as a development tool designed to be incorporated into other systems. For an idea of the development cost for using GPT-4o, the cost listed on the OpenAI site as of Tuesday is $5 for 1 million tokens (one token being 4 characters) of input, while receiving 1 million tokens of output will cost $15. 

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OpenAI has announced a new flagship model for ChatGPT in GPT-4o, a faster and smarter architecture for its incredibly popular multimodal AI. The new model enables ChatGPT to interact through text, audio, and video, resulting in more context-capable, human-like interactions than ever.

But I don’t really want to talk to you about that. That’s something you can read just about anywhere online, repeatedly. There’ll be news articles in the hundreds about OpenAI’s showcase, how well GPT-4o is, why it’s better than the previous version, how it compares, and its best uses. Sure, it’s impressive, and more than a tad cool, but I want to talk about something else entirely.

You’ll have to bear with me, and I promise this will all come full circle in the end. But just for now, I want to talk to you, reader, about the concept of the perfect joke.

The perfect joke

Comedic legend George Carlin viewed stand-up comedy as both an art and a craft. Some would disagree, seeing comedy as nothing more than vulgar words and amplified bullying. But those people are morons and we should all collectively come together and beat them with sticks.

The crafting of a joke is a process of refinement, and an art form in and of itself. It’s taking the threads of something and weaving it into something different. It’s the spinning of a yarn into a yarn you can spin.

My comedy hero, Norm MacDonald, is widely known for his ability to tell a shaggy dog story like no other. His long, drawn-out, retelling of tall tales on late-night talk shows has become a key staple of his legacy, but Norm’s concept of the perfect joke was quite the opposite. According to Norm, “The perfect joke would be if the punchline and the setup were almost identical.”

Okay, so what does this have to do with OpenAI’s announcement yesterday? Admittedly, not a lot. But it has a great deal to do with something that happened afterward. Taking to X (Twitter, for those of us unable to move with the times) CEO Sam Altman would resurrect 2022’s hottest corporate social media meme (where companies would tweet a lone word that summarized their area of interest) with a single-word post of his own: “her.”

While watching OpenAI's GPT-4o showcase, I wondered if I had anything amusing to say. Meanwhile, Sam Altman stumbled upon the perfect joke without trying. 

The setup

“her.”

It’s a fun comparison to make. ChatGPT’s new multimodal features bring it closer than ever to emulating Samantha from the movie Her — and who wouldn’t want their own on-demand Scarlett Johansson?

In his blog, Altman said the new GPT-4o “feels like AI from the movies; and it’s still a bit surprising to me that it’s real.” He added: “Getting to human-level response times and expressiveness turns out to be a big change.”

Now able to see, hear, talk, and reason better than ever, GPT-4o (with the “o” standing for “omni”) is the most advanced step in natural human-computer interaction to date. ChatGPT’s latest update opens the door to more contextual conversations and showcases the remarkable progress made by OpenAI since the chatbot first launched in 2022.

It’s evolving. Not sentient, nor human, but becoming more human-like with every iteration.

Altman’s excitement isn’t constrained to the chatbot's “personification,” either. He ruminates on the wider possibilities branching off of ChatGPT’s advancements, stating that while OpenAI’s initial goal was to create AI to benefit the world, “it now looks like we’ll create AI and then other people will use it to create all sorts of amazing things that we all benefit from.” 

Perhaps most exciting of all is how Altman pictures the ChatGPT of the near future, highlighting the potential of the software to gain “access to your information, the ability to take actions on your behalf, and more.” It’s sounding a lot like OpenAI is set to be everything that Microsoft’s Copilot wishes it was. I can really see an exciting future where we are able to use computers to do much more than ever before.” 

The punchline

“her.”

Of course, the flip side to the setup is the punchline. In my best SNL Weekend Update impersonation: Good news! ChatGPT’s latest update brings the movie Her to life! Bad news! ChatGPT’s latest update brings the movie Her to life!

I haven’t seen a piece of media so dead set against showcasing eye contact since catching See on Apple TV. It’s a pretty miserable world, where everybody is isolated and walled off. Loneliness appears to be the norm, exemplified by an earlier scene taking place in a packed subway car. Looking into the background it appears that people are engaging with one another until you realize they’re all individually talking to their virtual assistants.

The film depicts a world where genuine person-to-person interaction is somewhat falling out of favor, replaced by creepy attachments to AI companions — with the movie’s lead becoming romantically entangled with his proto Rabbit r1/Humane AI Pin-housed AI operating system. Whose job, by the way, is to write personalized letters on behalf of other people, furthering that vision of complete interpersonal detachment.

It’s not even like the film’s premise is all that far out, either. According to WhatsTheBigData, the “AI Girlfriend” market is already booming — valued at $2.8 billion and expected to rise to $9.5 billion by 2028. Which isn’t all that shocking when you consider one in five young people surveyed said that they’d be interested in engaging in virtual companionship.

Of course, there’s also the film’s outcome to contend with, let’s just say not everything ends well. Aside from an unsettling AI resurrection of philosopher Alan Watts, humanity is eventually abandoned, outgrown, and left behind. Something which could be catastrophic for us as we rely more and more on AI as the technology expands. 

Outlook

It’s a playful post, sure. However, it’s a particularly strange comparison for Altman to make, as OpenAI seems invested in everything except making AI girlfriends. Then again, its decision on that front may be wavering slightly with the company now being open to “exploring” NSFW content within its chatbot.

But then again, contradictory behavior for those leading the charge on AI just appears to be how things work. While they lead masses of software developers and engineers to develop high-functioning, human-like AI models such as GPT-4o, they seem to be stuck on GPT-1.

A petition to pause giant AI experiments was signed by Elon Musk, who would then go on to claim that there’s a 10 to 20 percent chance of AI destroying humanity before green-lighting X’s own large language model (LLM), GROK.

Even Altman himself has called for US regulation on AI, stating "I think if this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong...we want to be vocal about that, we want to work with the government to prevent that from happening." All of this was said while his company lobbied to water down regulation in the EU.

On one hand, tech seeks to create a tool that can assist, entertain, and even understand us on a deeper level. On the other, there's the looming threat of how far this evolution can go and how disruptive it could become. Altman's one-word tweet, "her," encapsulates both the promise and the peril.

Like my comedy hero, I too am just an old chunk of coal — at least in my mind. However, if somebody like Sam Altman is capable of accidentally stumbling across Norm MacDonald’s vision of the perfect joke, then maybe I can also.

AI is here to change the world.

AI is here to change the world.

It might not be as amusing, but it’s worth thinking about.

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Artificial intelligence figureheads OpenAI are poised to reveal new updates to its GPT-4 model and its popular chatbot ChatGPT later today.

While the expected showcase will present feature demos and software improvements for the popular large language model (LLM), a separate report indicates that whatever is announced today could have a big impact on the upcoming iPhone — with Apple allegedly close to striking a deal with the company to bring ChatGPT tech to the iPhone 16 and iOS 18.

Having been caught on the back foot with AI's popularity explosion in recent years, Apple is dedicated to bringing its various software platforms up to speed and taking full advantage of the NPU-touting chipsets inside of hardware like its MacBook, iPad, and iPhone.

The company's CEO Tim Cook has already promised that "Transformative opportunities" through AI features are on their way this year, and as a deal between Apple and OpenAI could see 

OpenAI announcement: What to expect and how to watch

While we don't know exactly what OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman are preparing to reveal during today's live stream, we do know that we're likely to be shown demos of new features heading to the AI platform and get clued in on any updates to the chatbot's GPT-4 model.

There's not a lot of information to go on, but we do know what won't be making an appearance during today's event. According to a post shared to X by Altman, the upcoming event won't be used to reveal the highly-anticipated GPT-5 model, and nor will it be used to launch a new AI-powered search engine — both of which being projects OpenAI are said to be working on at present.

However, Altman claims that while neither will feature at today's event, what OpenAI does have to show feels like "Magic."

While much of the talk around today's event seems angled towards ChatGPT, it's possible that we may hear news about public availability for sister-software like Sora, the text-to-video AI or OpenAI's text-to-speech model Voice Engine.

Beyond this, we'll need to wait and see what the San Francisco-based company has in store when it's live-streamed event takes place later today.

Those interested can watch the event live at the OpenAI homepage later today, taking place at 10 a.m. PT, 1 p.m. ET, or 6 p.m. GMT.

Apple + ChatGPT = A Siri-ous upgrade

As recently shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple has "closed in" on an agreement with OpenAI to bring the Microsoft-backed startup's impressive AI tech to iPhone and iOS 18.

Seemingly, other platforms like the MacBook with macOS 15 or iPad with iPadOS 18 aren't involved in this deal, which could position the upcoming iPhone 16 as the tip of the spear for Apple when it comes to penetrating the AI market.

It's reported that Siri will be the prime candidate for an AI upgrade, with Apple seeking to give its digital assistant a complete overhaul befitting of the AI era.

It's unsure how many of OpenAI's models could be involved in the deal, however, it's suggested that ChatGPT will be one of the primary adoptions, one that could see the LLM rebranded on iPhone handsets as a locally-running Siri 2.0 of sorts.

Outlook

Today's OpenAI live stream will introduce us to the latest ChatGPT features and updates, many of which could make their way to iPhone 16 via iOS 18, potentially via an AI-overhauled Siri if the deal with Apple goes ahead.

However, even if this deal isn't something that pans out, the suggestion from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman that what they have to show off "feels like magic" is more than a compelling enough reason to tune in and check out where the world's most popular chatbot is heading next.

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