WHAT is GhatGPT? Surely you’ve heard of the online artificial intelligence (AI) that writes out, in beautiful English, the answer to any question you ask it? It’s the new rage among young Generation Zs and Generation Alphas, and for many who have been around the block a bit longer. Well, whether the answers the AI gives are the absolute truth is debatable, but they do contain nuggets of information and ideas based on the truth as found in the massive, intricate web of the worldwide web.
ChatGPT was designed by OpenAI, an artificial intelligence lab based in the US. It was launched for public use on November 30, 2022, and has soared in popularity since then, so much so that it has now become the fastest-growing consumer software application in history, with over 100 million users. It has also enabled OpenAI to earn close to US$29b (about R550b) so far. The most modern version (ChatGPT-4) is not free, but you can use ChatGPT-3.5 for free. You can access it online at this web address: https://chat.openai.com/.
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So, what’s so special about this new member on the tech block? What can you use it for? Well, pretty much anything, if you tell me. Here are some of the things I have used ChatGPT for, and I will also add some other uses which others have suggested:
1. Inspiration for creative work.
I have used ChatGPT to come up with ideas in writing an article – not actual article ideas but maybe points to add to an article which then spurs me on to research new ideas. No – do not copy ChatGPT’s work – that is plagiarism – see more about this at the end. But, it definitely offers some interesting ideas and is seldom short of them. My daughter, who is now working as a graphic designer, has found some inspiration for the social media posts she has to write every day. If you’re a writer of fiction, you could possibly use it to give writing prompts or to help brainstorm ideas for a new book, or to help you when you are stuck in the difficult middle of the book. For artists, it may offer painting or drawing ideas or just inspiration if you ask it the most random questions. I asked ChatGPT how to paint interesting landscape paintings, and this is what it came up with. Incredible, isn’t it?
2. To ask for personal advice
For example, I asked ChatGPT some health questions. Now, I want to give a strong disclaimer here – please consult your doctor first and foremost when you have a health problem. If you’ve been to the doctor and their advice doesn’t ring true for you in any way, you could ask ChatGPT some pointed questions so you can know whether you need a second opinion – that’s what I did. And the second opinion turned out to be marvellous!! I’m so glad I went to a different doctor. Yay for amazing, knowledgeable and compassionate medical providers.
The internet has some scary advice for medical issues and can take you down negative and spiralling rabbit holes that can make you go into worst-case-scenario land. And it may give conflicting or untrue, unsubstantiated advice, but it’s good to get an all-rounded answer to some troubling questions you may have – to get you thinking. But, please, go to your doctor or specialist – you could even ask them questions based on what you’ve discovered on ChatGPT.
But even if you have concerns from a social point of view or another aspect of your life, ChatGPT can offer some sage advice.
3. Helps you word that difficult email or WhatsApp
If you need to send an awkward email to a work colleague or superior and you have no idea how to word it, ChatGPT will definitely give you some ideas. If you have no idea how to express your good wishes to a friend or relative for their birthday, or how to ask a favour from a loved one, just type in your question. Try to be as specific as possible when you word the question to the AI. For example, “I want to send a Happy Birthday message to my uncle whom I haven’t seen in years. I want to convey to him that I’ve missed him and feel bad for not communicating with him that much over the years, but that I’ve been thinking of him a lot lately and would like to visit him soon. How do I word this?”
4. Explains advanced concepts in simple layman’s terms or even simpler
You can ask it to explain an advanced scientific theory or anything you don’t understand in your studies or schoolwork. Just say something like, “Explain like I’m 5.” Or use 10, or 13, or whatever level of understanding you want it explained in. I’ve just asked ChatGPT the following: “What is string theory? Explain like I’m 5.” And this is what it gave me:
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5. Can help you learn another language
It not only answers questions about vocabulary and grammar, but you could also use the chat feature to communicate in the written word in another language, which will help to build your skills in that language – like a free language study buddy. If you’re not partial to Google Translate, it also has a translation feature that explains things in a bit more detail.
6. Helps you write that CV and cover letter or prepare you for an interview
You can ask ChatGPT to help you customise your CV for a specific job application and also to write up a cover letter for that job. Unless, of course, you are applying for a writing job – then you need all your communication to be original content written by you. For interview prep, you could make up possible interview questions – there are many standard questions that interviewers ask, like “Where do you see yourself in five years?” You can then ask ChatGPT to come up with a good answer – you will need to give it some information about you in the question.
7. Writes a poem or helps you write music
For an AI, ChatGPT is surprisingly creative. It’s written poems about our cats after we’ve briefly described them that left us astounded, although some of them were a bit silly. But it’s a great way to come up with song lyrics and poems. Just make sure you reference ChatGPT. Definite copyright laws haven’t been put in place in SA yet with regards to AIs like ChatGPT, but remember that the bot sources its information from material on the internet, and that material is copyrighted – well, if it’s not in the public domain. So, be careful what you use it for – it’s best not to use it for commercial purposes.
8. Helps you write or debug code
Apparently, ChatGPT is good at coding – that says a lot about the creators of the AI. So, if you’re a student of code or a new programmer, you can ask it to write code for a specific purpose in your preferred programming language. You can also ask it to pick up issues in your own written code, and it will provide fix-up suggestions. For those tech peeps out there, it may make your studies or work easier, but remember to always check things with your professors or superiors.
I’m excited about what the future holds with regard to AI chatbots, but I’m also nervous. Will they eventually take over our jobs? Well, in the meantime, they’re not advanced enough and they’re pretty fun to play around with. Get chatting!
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