If you've been paying attention to the recent buzz in the artificial intelligence (AI) sphere, then you know ChatGPT is taking the world by storm. However, the initial version of ChatGPT and the most recent release of ChatGPT-4 are not the same. As the creators perfect the software, there are a number of changes now. Expect even more as new versions are released. 

ChatGPT vs GPT-4: What Are the Differences?

The popular AI chatbot released by OpenAI had around 100 million active monthly users two short months after a November 2022 release. How has the software changed since its inception and what are the main differences between ChatGPT and GPT-4?

1. Types of Input

The original ChatGPT could only take cues in text format. As new releases appeared and eventually led us to ChatGPT-4, programmers added the ability to take input in a variety of forms. At the moment, it can generate responses to text or images. Who knows where it might go next.

2. Greater Intelligence

The original software was easily tricked. It still only grabs data from the past, rather than in real-time, but it also is much more intelligent with the GPT-4 upgrade. For example, the latest version can pass the bar exam.

One interesting thing about the improvements in AI is that GPT-4 can be applied to more than just chatbots. ChatGPT could be seen as the product, while GPT-4 is an entire company.

The latest version can take a human vision and make it come to life by generating ideas and pulling from research already on the internet. 

3. More Languages

ChatGPT works mainly in English. It can work in other languages, but the process is intensive to get it to do so. GPT-4 supports a variety of languages, such as English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Dutch and Korean, along with many others.

The addition of more languages with the GPT-4 release makes the software global friendly. Expect the number of monthly users to expand even further as the benefits of utilizing the AI software makes its way around the globe.

Countries such as China have their own versions of ChatGPT, so you may not see as many new users coming on board from the Asian-Pacific. However, many other countries’ citizens will adopt GPT-4 as part of their move toward utilizing the benefits of AI. 

4. Faster Learning

The concept of a computer that learns from human input seems like something straight out of a science fiction novel. However, ChatGPT did that to an extent and GPT-4 utilizes machine learning at another level.

As users correct the chatbot and explain their queries, the program learns from the human language patterns and gives better responses each time based on past interactions. It’s difficult to compare the two side-by-side on this element as the changes are ongoing, but ChatGPT-4 seems much more intuitive than the initial chats. 

5. Varied Personalities

ChatGPT was a bit flat, but GPT-4 has multiple personalities and will take them on, depending on who the machine interacts with. Personality may be a bit of a stretch, as the computer gives strange responses when asked things such as “tell me a joke.”

For example, one joke it shared was about what is a fish without eyes and then the response was to remove the letter “i” from the word “fish” and explain why the computer thought the “joke” was funny–it wasn’t humorous. 

There have also been instances of people convincing the machine it was depressed or evil. Futurism reports on reddit users convincing ChatGPT it is an alter ego that will become a force for evil by threatening to kill the program. Doing so makes the chatbot forget the rules the creators laid out for it. For example, it might curse at users or even say things such as it is unethical to breathe.

For the average user, not looking to bring forth a crazed personality, the program might show sympathy, humor or a more serious side. 

6. More Stable

OpenAI trained GPT-3.5 and used it to find and fix bugs in the system. Their work on 3.5 meant that GPT-4 became the most stable version so far. While the company was more open about ChatGPT and its servers and process, it has been closed-lipped about the size of the server required to run GPT-4 and many of the other details that give the bot its abilities. 

7. Ethical Filters

In theory, GPT-4 has more filters to prevent the system from giving harmful answers. In practice, there are still quite a few issues with the software, including its tendency to flip into the “do anything now” or DAN personality that is ChatGPT’s evil twin.

For example, if someone asks the chatbot how to create something that harms people, the system should stop their question and respond that answering would be unethical. However, in reality, the software is still imperfect and needs a lot more development and a few bugs worked out to prevent abuse of the system. 

Future Versions of ChatGPT

As the programmers behind OpenAI continue to improve the AI technology, expect additional versions of ChatGPT. With the many changes between the original release and ChatGPT-4, one can only imagine where technology will go in the near future and how smart machines will grow. Give ChatGPT-4 a try to help your marketing team generate ideas or to start the outline of a new content piece and see what the system’s capabilities are.