Is AI development moving too fast?

OpenAI’s GPT Store, where users will be able to share and monetize customized versions of ChatGPT, officially launched this week.

Anyone who subscribes to OpenAI's $20-per-month ChatGPT Plus subscription will have access to the GPT Store’s wide variety of apps created by OpenAI business partners and the broader community, who collectively built 3 million GPTs since the technology to do so was launched two months ago.

• The move, which has been compared to the launch of Apple’s App Store in 2008, signals a transition for OpenAI from offering ChatGPT as its core product to becoming a platform service that others build apps on top of.
• But some experts and lawmakers are concerned that OpenAI is moving too quickly, while leaving basic questions about AI safety unanswered.

The arguments: Critics of OpenAI’s swift commercial development contend that the company’s focus on short-term, practical AI applications has led it to overlook the long-term implications of AI research. These include the potential for bad actors to use AI for misinformation or other harmful purposes, or for biased AI models to exacerbate existing social inequalities – especially given the fact that no comprehensive federal legislation exists regarding the use of AI.

• OpenAI and industry proponents argue that fears over potential harms caused by AI are overblown, and that the technology isn’t close to achieving any semblance of human-like intelligence. They also contend that AI-generated misinformation likely won’t affect public discourse in a significant way, since misinformation is already widespread online.

There are also major concerns over AI copyright issues. Last month, the NY Times became the first major US media organization to sue both Microsoft and ChatGPT-maker OpenAI for alleged copyright infringement, joining similar lawsuits filed by popular authors and online content creators.

📊 Flash poll: In your opinion, is AI development moving too fast?

• Yes
• No
• Unsure/other