OpenAI has introduced a shop for GPTs, or personalized chatbot applications driven by its text- and image-generating AI models (such as GPT-4 and DALL-E 3), following its announcement to developers last week that it would do so.
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The GPT Store, as it is known, is a new tab within the web ChatGPT client that offers a selection of GPTs created by OpenAI’s partners and the larger development community. On the community leaderboard, which is divided into lifestyle, writing, research, programming, and education sections, GPT users can peruse popular and trending GPTs.
Users enrolled in one of OpenAI’s premium ChatGPT plans, such as ChatGPT Plus, ChatGPT Enterprise, or the recently introduced ChatGPT Team, must access the GPT Store.
A content designer from Canva, a programming instructor from Khan Academy, and a trail recommender from AllTrails are just a few of the GPTs that will be accessible at launch. As of right now, all are free to use. Later on, more on that.
Coding knowledge is not necessary to create GPTs, and developers are free to create GPTs that are as basic or complicated as they like. Developers only need to specify in plain English the features they would like their GPT to have, and OpenAI’s GPT-building tool, GPT Builder, will try to create an AI-powered chatbot that can do those tasks.
A cookbook collection can be used to train a GPT so that it can respond to inquiries regarding, say, the ingredients for a particular recipe. Alternatively, a GPT may consume proprietary codebases from businesses so that developers could review their style or produce code that adheres to best practices.
Developers must validate their user profiles and submit their GPTs to OpenAI’s new review system, which combines automatic and human review, in order to have their GPTs listed in the GPT Store. This is done to make sure the GPTs adhere to the company’s conditions of use. (Users who see problematic GPTs that get away with it can also report them.)
I emailed OpenAI a series of questions regarding the “human” component of the GPT Store review process, including the reviewers’ compensation and access to mental health resources, because the company has a history of hiring underpaid, overworked contractors in developing nations to moderate and enhance its next-generation AI systems. At the time of writing, the corporation has not reacted; if they do, I will update this piece.
Developers will not be allowed to charge for GPTs at launch. However, somewhere in Q1, OpenAI intends to introduce a “GPT builder revenue program” that will pay American builders according to “user engagement” with their GPTs. OpenAI promises to release information on the payment requirements in the future.
The GPT Store was first revealed at OpenAI’s annual developer conference, DevDay, in 2017. However, its release was postponed until December, most likely due to a leadership change in November, shortly after the initial announcement. (The short version of events is that OpenAI’s board of directors ordered CEO Sam Altman to resign, and after investors and staff became alarmed, he was reinstated with a new board.)
For apps that utilize OpenAI’s model family, at the very least, GPTs successfully democratize the construction of generative AI apps. Consultants relying mainly on developing GPT-like solutions for clients could face redundancy due to the emergence of GPTs. The implications of this shift remain uncertain, and only time will reveal its ultimate impact.
(Information Source: Techcrunch.com)
