OpenAI announced on Monday the launch of a new service that enables individuals and small businesses to create customized versions of its popular online chatbot ChatGPT and instantly share them on the internet.
The service, called “GPTs,” allows users to customize the chatbot for specific tasks without the need for additional software or coding. For example, a small bed-and-breakfast owner could build a chatbot to answer questions from their guests.
Peter Deng, OpenAI’s vice president of consumer and enterprise product, mentioned that the possibilities are endless, with potential applications like language teaching or interior design advice.
OpenAI has been actively releasing new AI tools recently. In September, it integrated its DALL-E image generator into ChatGPT and introduced a new version of the chatbot that can interact through spoken words, similar to Apple’s Siri.
Since its introduction last year, ChatGPT has amassed millions of users who were impressed by its ability to answer questions, write essays, and discuss various topics. Other companies, including Google and Anthropic, have also released similar chatbots. OpenAI aims to stay ahead of its competitors.
The GPTs service is available to users of ChatGPT Plus, a subscription-based version priced at $20 per month.
While experienced software developers use ChatGPT’s underlying technology, GPT-4, for building applications like automated tutors and search engines, the new GPTs service is aimed at individuals and small businesses with no coding experience.
To create a customized chatbot, users only need to provide a few instructions and, in some cases, upload relevant documents. For example, a bed-and-breakfast owner could upload their guest manual when designing a bot to answer guest questions.
OpenAI’s image generator can also be used to create a logo for the new chatbot.
Peter Deng admitted that bots created with the service may make mistakes due to the massive amount of data they’re trained on, occasionally leading to incorrect or fictional responses.
Considering the potential for generating offensive, misleading, or dangerous content, OpenAI stated that it will review all new bots created with GPTs and reject any that violate its terms of service. In the future, these bots will be made available through an app store, similar to Apple’s iPhone applications.
OpenAI also emphasized that users of the service can request that their documents and data not be used for training future versions of OpenAI’s technology.
OpenAI is currently facing lawsuits from writers, artists, and programmers who allege that the company unlawfully used their work to develop its AI systems.
The company reported that ChatGPT has over 100 million active users weekly, while more than two million software developers utilize GPT-4 and other services to create new applications.
