As the world continues to embrace technology and its powerful possibilities, recent developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) have sent excitement levels sky-high. ChatGPT, a chatbot AI, set records by reaching 100 million users in just two months, and art generating AI tools have also been on the rise.
Yet, issues around AI technology have also been coming to light. In January, US federal lawsuit was filed against AI art generators, Stability AI, Midjourney, and DeviantArt’s DreamUp, alleging copyright infringement through their unauthorised use of artists’ original works to train the AI tools. Additionally, sensational claims of plagiarism against the popular chatbot ChatGPT have emerged, followed by the recent defamation scandal initiated against ChatGPT and its developers OpenAI.
The defamation scandal revolves around Australian man, Brian Hood, the current mayor of a suburban council Northwest of the city of Melbourne. ChatGPT falsely accused him of spending time imprisoned due to charges of bribery. However, Hood was actually the whistleblower for the financial misdeeds in the Reserve Bank of Australia, Securency and Note Printing Australia criminal case. No charges were ever made on Brian Hood, yet this has not stopped the chatbot from inventing lies about him.
Hood’s lawyers have issued a concerns notice to ChatGPT developers OpenAI in late-March, yet there has not been a response. Many believe this defamation case is another illustration of the technology’s limitations, as it relies upon the information being fed to them, and lacks the ability to critically think and ‘read between the lines’. Keep in mind that ChatGPT warns users that “ChatGPT may produce inaccurate information about people, places, or facts”, although this offers little comfort in situations like Brian Hood’s.
In an attempt to improve accuracy levels, OpenAI released the upgraded GPT-4 update in early March. It boasts a 40% improvement to factual accuracy on adversarial questions. We shall soon enough find out whether this is enough to keep ChatGPT out of trouble and avoid similar issues in the future.
OpenAI is a scientific research laboratory based in San Francisco, California focused on developing artificial intelligence (AI). Founded in December 2015, OpenAI aims to advance digital intelligence in a way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return. Through research, engineering, and the deployment of highly effective AI technologies, OpenAI seeks to eliminate barriers between human and machine capacities and maximize the potential of both.
Brian Hood is the current mayor of a suburban council northwest of Melbourne, Australia. Hood first made headlines in 2012 when he acted as the whistleblower to authorities and media regarding the illegal conduct of two companies owned by the Reserve Bank of Australia, Securency and Note Printing Australia. In recognition of his courage and dedication to exposing the wrongdoing, Victorian Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth acknowledged Hood’s “tremendous courage”. Hood continues to stand for justice, speaking publicly about the issues experienced in his local council and how he is working to make a positive change.
