OpenAI has announced the commencement of training for its new flagship artificial intelligence model, set to succeed the GPT-4 technology that powers ChatGPT. This new model aims to bring “the next level of capabilities” as OpenAI strives to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI), a machine capable of performing any task the human brain can do. The new AI model will drive various AI products, including chatbots, digital assistants, search engines, and image generators.
Advancements in OpenAI’s new AI model
Shiftdelete.netOpenAI, a leading AI company based in San Francisco, revealed in a blog post that this new model would significantly enhance the capabilities of its existing AI technologies. The company’s GPT-4 model, released in March 2023, allows chatbots and other software to answer questions, write emails, generate term papers, and analyze data. An updated version, GPT-4o, introduced recently, can also generate images and respond to questions in a highly conversational voice.
OpenAI's new security committee members were chosen exclusively from within the company, which caused a great deal of controversy.
The training of these advanced AI models involves analyzing vast amounts of digital data, including sounds, photos, videos, Wikipedia articles, books, and news articles. This process can take months or even years, followed by additional months of testing and fine-tuning before the technology is ready for public use. Therefore, OpenAI’s next model might not be available for another nine months to a year or more.
OpenAI’s new safety and security committee
In addition to the new AI model, OpenAI has created a Safety and Security Committee to address the risks associated with its advanced technologies. This committee will develop policies and processes to safeguard the technology, with an aim to have new policies in place by late summer or fall. The committee includes OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, board members Bret Taylor, Adam D’Angelo, and Nicole Seligman.
The formation of this committee comes amidst growing concerns about the potential dangers of AI. Notably, Ilya Sutskever, a co-founder and one of the leaders of OpenAI’s safety efforts, recently left the company. This departure raised concerns about OpenAI’s commitment to addressing AI’s risks. Dr. Sutskever had been part of a team exploring ways to ensure future AI models do no harm, a project known as the Superalignment team. Following his departure, Jan Leike, who co-led the team, also resigned, leaving the future of the Superalignment team in doubt.
OpenAI has integrated its long-term safety research into its broader efforts to ensure the safety of its technologies. John Schulman, another co-founder, will now lead this safety research, with the new safety committee overseeing his work and providing guidance on addressing technological risks.
Implications for the AI industry
As OpenAI trains its new flagship AI model and implements enhanced safety measures, the company continues to navigate the challenges and opportunities of advancing AI technology. This latest development underscores the importance of balancing innovation with safety, as AI companies like OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Microsoft push the boundaries of what AI can achieve.
The leaked Google documents and ongoing advancements in AI technologies highlight the complex and multifaceted nature of search ranking and AI development. For SEOs and AI developers, understanding these elements is crucial for refining strategies and improving the performance of AI-driven applications. As the AI landscape evolves, companies must remain vigilant in addressing the ethical and safety concerns that accompany these powerful technologies.
