The availability of OpenAI's ChatGPT on iOS opens up new possibilities and challenges for enterprises. Microsoft partner OpenAI on May 18 […]
The availability of OpenAI's ChatGPT on iOS opens up new possibilities and challenges for enterprises.
Microsoft partner OpenAI revealed on May 18 that N. Chat, the chat app, is now free for Apple iOS users and will sync across all users' devices. The app uses Whisper, an open-source speech recognition system from an AI vendor/research lab, and enables speech input. ChatGPT-Plus subscribers will have access to GPT-4 functionality and access to features and support on iOS.
"It's great to see the increase in accessibility," said Will McCann-White, an analyst at Forrester Research. "Now that you can download it to your phone, it could theoretically integrate more with other apps."
The application also creates new data sources for generative AI systems, such as email, McKeon-White noted.
However, data feeds can help improve accuracy, but probably not reduce the occasional "coherent nonsense" that systems like ChatGPT produce. Coherent nonsense is when the system generates answers to queries that sound accurate but are false or misleading.
"A model can only train so much. For example, if you ask it to summarize a text thread or look up information in an app, without connections, it will ultimately not be more effective," McKeon-White said.
The good and the bad of business
Embodying ChatGPT in the form of an app won't make the system more efficient, but more API integration with GPT could mean the quality of the output could improve, McKeon-White said.
For businesses, the new app will make ChatGPT more accessible to those who already use it on their desktop.
"This will allow for increased usage and potentially enable new use cases as they can now be accessed more easily away from desks and offices," said Gartner analyst Bern Elliot.
Businesses may use the app when users need faster access to information on their smartphones. Employees can also use pre-programmed prompts to use the app hands-free in the field, Elliot said.
In the early stages of large-scale use of ChatGPT and other generative AI chatbots, it's unclear what the instant applications are for the enterprise, especially in a mobile format.
This will allow for increased usage and potentially enable new use cases as they can now be more easily accessed while away from their desks and offices. Bern ElliottGartner Analyst
“The phenomenal adoption of ChatGPT and [products that use the large language models that interactive chatbots are based on] wasn’t well predicted,” Elliot said. “There’s also a ‘try it out and see what works’ approach. However, as with many early technologies, the actual "killer app" is sometimes not what was originally predicted."
However, the new wider accessibility of ChatGPT on Apple iPhones could prove a problem for businesses that have already banned AI-generating systems, McKeon-White said. It can also create security issues for businesses.
Employees could mistakenly give the system access to company information while using it to create responses to emails from their phones, he said.
Ultimately, the ChatGPT application is what OpenAI expected.
"Other tools are available for accessing ChatGPT on iPhones, so this is part of what OpenAI is taking and they should already be part of that," Elliott said. "It's not a surprising development, but nonetheless, it's a good move."
The IOS ChatGPT app is currently only available in the United States.
Esther Ajao is a news writer covering artificial intelligence software and systems.
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