Elon Musk Plans to Build "TruthGPT" as an Alternative to OpenAI's ChatGPT
Elon Musk, the owner of Tesla, SpaceX, and Twitter, has announced his plan to create an alternative to OpenAI's ChatGPT called "TruthGPT". In a recent interview with Fox News, Musk claims that his AI chatbot would be a "maximum truth-seeking AI that tries to understand the nature of the universe". The billionaire also accused OpenAI, where he was previously an investor, of training their chatbot to be "politically correct", prompting him to create a rival service.
The success of OpenAI's ChatGPT, which has over 100 million monthly users, has sparked an AI arms race among tech giants like Microsoft and Google. However, there are concerns about the accuracy of the information shared by these large language models. Both ChatGPT and Google's Bard have been known to occasionally spout falsehoods with confidence.
Musk's commitment to building a similar service comes less than a month after he called for a pause in the training of powerful AI systems due to the risks they pose to society. His new project, however, seeks to offer an alternative that prioritizes truth-seeking rather than political correctness.
What is ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is a large language model that is trained on vast amounts of data to interpret text and respond to prompts in a human-like manner. A recent upgrade to its technology, named GPT-4, has vastly improved the chatbot's ability to understand and complete tasks. Companies such as Microsoft and Expedia have integrated the technology into their products to help users search the internet and book holidays.
Concerns About AI Accuracy
While AI technology continues to develop at a rapid rate, there have been growing calls for its regulation. Musk has expressed his support for government action, stating that AI is "more dangerous" than the rockets and cars his companies are known for. Last week, the Chinese government published draft rules outlining how generative AI services would likely have to adhere to the same restrictions as the rest of the internet in China.
In March, Italy became the first country to ban ChatGPT while the country's data protection authorities investigated its collection of user information. Additionally, the EU's law enforcement agency, Europol, warned that ChatGPT could be used by criminals and to spread disinformation. The White House has also invited public feedback on how AI should be regulated in the US, with the aim of protecting jobs and privacy.
When Will We See "TruthGPT"?
Reports suggest that Musk is still assembling a team for his AI start-up. He has already incorporated a new business called X.AI Corp, according to a Nevada business filing, with Musk listed as its director and his adviser, Jared Birchall, as secretary. It remains to be seen when "TruthGPT" will enter the market, but Musk's focus on building an AI chatbot that prioritizes truth-seeking is a promising development in the field of AI.
