Welcome to the ChatGPT Comedy Club
Ah, ChatGPT! Launched on November 30, 2022, it proudly stands as OpenAI’s gift to humanity—a chatbot that can allegedly tackle a variety of topics, from coding to crafting the perfect travel itinerary and even offering medical diagnoses. You heard that right! But in reality, it’s like a jack-of-all-trades who only mastered the art of tossing out random facts like confetti at a parade.
The Future of Productivity or Just Another Tech Fad?
Generative AI, the sophisticated engine behind ChatGPT, is predicted to revolutionize productivity and contribute trillions (yes, trillions!) to the global economy. But history whispers a cautionary tale about new technologies: they arrive with a bang and then take a snooze on the couch for a decade or two. So, relax! Your job is safe—at least until ChatGPT becomes the next Shakespeare, which, spoiler alert, isn’t happening anytime soon.
ChatGPT: The Knucklehead Next Door
As Ian Bogost from The Atlantic reminds us, ChatGPT has its struggles. While it may offer a mean summary of a plot, it also produces responses that are as deep as a kiddie pool. This chatbot may be verbose, but understanding human language? That’s beyond its digital grasp.
It’s Not You, It’s Me
According to John P. Nelson, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Georgia Tech, large language models are “really dumb.” Think of it like this: ChatGPT is that friend who can recite every line from movies but struggles to hold an actual conversation. Sure, it can remix your questions, but understanding? You might as well ask your toaster for relationship advice.
Feeding the Beast
ChatGPT cannot learn without human hand-holding. It’s akin to a toddler demanding more snacks but needing an entire adult workforce to source said snacks. So, if ChatGPT gives you a decent response, remember that it’s the result of human labor. And, oh yes, that labor often includes combing through the darkest corners of the internet—to clean up ChatGPT’s “unique” takes on human knowledge.
A Price to Pay
Journalists recently uncovered a delightful little secret: hundreds of Kenyan workers slogging away for peanuts—literally $2 an hour—reading through unspeakably vile content so that ChatGPT won’t repeat that stuff verbatim. Because clearly, cleaning up the internet one traumatic article at a time is the new gold rush. Just think of the glorious irony: an AI built on human labor frets about not offending anyone while simultaneously traumatizing the very people it relies on.
The Moral of the Story
Nelson concludes that if you ever get a nugget of wisdom from ChatGPT, remember to give a standing ovation to the countless people behind the scenes who contributed to this digital marvel. After all, it’s not this autonomous super-intelligent brain we’re dealing with; it’s a technology that needs a human touch to keep its gears turning. So, next time you chat with ChatGPT, chuckle at its attempts and appreciate the human effort behind its digital curtain.
Wrapping It Up
In the end, ChatGPT offers some laughs amid the serious business of AI. It’s a reminder that technology, for all its advancements, is as ineffective as a cat trying to retrieve a stick. So fear not—your job might be fine, but do keep an eye on ChatGPT, just in case it starts offering cat-sitting services.
