As ChatGPT celebrates its first birthday, it’s time to take a step back and assess the journey of this AI phenomenon.
In this article, we dive into the diverse and far-reaching impacts of ChatGPT across various sectors. Whether you’re a tech enthusiast, a business professional, or just curious about the AI wave, join us as we explore the amazing first year of ChatGPT and its influence on the industry landscape.
Our Experts
- James Fisher, Chief Strategy Officer at Qlik
- Aaron Goldman, Chief Marketing Officer at Mediaocean
- Mel Parker, former Deputy Head Teacher and Educational Technologist at RM Technology
- Richard Self, Senior Lecturer at The University of Derby
- Carlos Cantú, CMO at Freepik
- Felix Ohswald, CEO and Co-Founder at GoStudent
- Greg Bortkiewicz, Digital Marketing Specialist
- Duncan Casemore, CTO and Co-Founder at Applaud
- Claudia Harris OBE, CEO at Makers
- Mike King, CMO at AIPRM
- Tony Yates, Vice President Engineering at Livi UK
- Ganpath Thanumoorthy, Customer Experience Lead at Firstsource
- Hana Rizvic, Head of AI at Intellias
- Matt Rider, VP of Security Engineering EMEA at Exabeam
- Josh Mesout, CIO at Civo
- Matt Fletcher, Client Account Manager at Optix Solutions
James Fisher, Chief Strategy Officer at Qlik
“ChatGPT burst onto the scene in a flurry of noise and hype last year. As a result, some businesses were fearful of the fairly unknown technology, unsure of how it can be used and ultimately reluctant to implement it. This means businesses are now facing the challenge of acting quickly to avoid being left behind with GenAI, while proceeding with caution to avoid major missteps, and trying to learn as they go.
“Part of this process has been getting to grips with putting a formal AI strategy in place. Our research found that 39% of organisations now have a formalised plan for using A – which is undoubtably influenced by a desire to embrace GenAI tools like ChatGPT. But this number should be higher, and a year on from ChatGPT we should be seeing AI approached more strategically, and with strong governance in place. ChatGPT and GenAI have also revealed to businesses the importance of getting a strong data fabric in place. Our research found that only 20% currently have a data fabric that supports GenAI very well – improving this will be vital to make effective use of the technology.”
Aaron Goldman, Chief Marketing Officer at Mediaocean
“If 2023 was the year AI hit the mainstream, 2024 will be the year we actually figure out how to use it. To an extent, that will mean that pragmatism retakes the reins from optimism in our thinking about AI. Rather than rely on broad apps like Chat GPT and Bard, we’ll leverage the large language models (LLMs) behind them to create bespoke applications.
“In much the same way that the Internet splintered from large portals to niche websites and then to apps, AI will follow the same trajectory. Recently OpenAI rolled out the ability to create custom GPTs. Think of this like when Apple first enabled apps on the iPhone. 2024 will bring dramatic innovation and adoption for niche applications of AI in our business and personal lives.”
Mel Parker, Former Deputy Head Teacher and Educational Technologist at RM Technology
“Generative AI tools like ChatGPT have created huge opportunities for schools and children in the last year, with two-thirds of students turning to the software to help with schoolwork in a variety of different ways – from solving maths problems (40%) to writing an English essay (41%). Teachers have even been able to use it to cut back on time-consuming admin tasks, giving them the time back to do what they enjoy most – teach!
“However, the rapid adoption of ChatGPT without training or regulation has led to a number of issues. Students are already becoming overly reliant on the technology, with 70% concerned about taking their exams without it, and teachers admitting to students knowing more about AI than they do. For us to continue enjoying the benefits of ChatGPT, we need to prioritise upskilling teachers and creating clear boundaries for children in its use, ensuring they’re still able to develop their own skills without needing external assistance. After all, it’s only a matter of time before these free tools are put behind paywalls.”
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Richard Self, Senior Lecturer at The University of Derby
“A year on from ChatGPT’s introduction, these large language models (LLMs) are now being touted as approaching Artificial General Intelligence – the representation of generalised human cognitive abilities in software. My biggest issue with this is that LLM-based systems often make up some – if not all – of their responses (often referred to as hallucinations). The fundamental cause of this error is that ‘transformers’ – the neural network architecture that can automatically transform one type of input into another type of output – are flawed.
“Transformers serve as the backbone for Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, processing one sequence of words at a time. This function is contingent on the likelihood of specific tokens being connected to others within the LLM model. This operation is also influenced by a parameter termed ‘temperature.’ A temperature set to zero leads to relatively predictable but monotonous outcomes. In most instances, the temperature setting is around 0.8, making the results more diverse and dynamic, albeit prone to inconsistencies and deviations known as ‘hallucinations.
“There is a lot of debate about how to reduce the impact of hallucinations in AI, but they are all doomed to fail. Transformers are a dead-end technology. We will not make progress towards artificial general intelligence (AGI) until we ditch current approaches to generative AI and invent new technologies.”
Carlos Cantú, CMO at Freepik
“When DALL-E first came onto the scene, it was clear that generative AI was poised to revolutionize the marketing sector. Once ChatGPT arrived, it spearheaded conversations across industries about what this technology could do.
“Looking back at one year of ChatGPT, it’s clear that generative AI should now be considered a powerful tool, especially for creatives. Generative AI can propel content creation into a new realm, allowing marketing and design teams, especially at small and medium businesses, to elevate their strategies and collateral.
“Alongside reimagined creativity, businesses should actively consider adopting tools that harness generative AI technology, such as text to image generators, to unlock new avenues for efficiency. By embracing the technology, businesses can maintain a competitive edge. It can enable teams to produce impressive content and analyze consumer behavior quickly, without compromising on quality, so it’s a win-win. Ultimately, a reluctance to use these tools will leave marketers and creatives trailing behind, missing out on valuable opportunities for growth and innovation.
“However, the benefits of generative AI should be underpinned by an understanding of its risks. It should be used to supplement and strengthen the work of creatives, rather than replace it. It will be exciting to see how ChatGPT and generative AI continues to evolve in response to industry concerns and needs. It’s obvious that this technology will open many more doors.”
Felix Ohswald, CEO and Co-Founder at GoStudent
“In its relatively short life so far, Chat GPT has rocked many industries, including education, and promises to continue forcing us to shift our methods, revolutionising the way students learn and the way teachers interact with their students.
“Earlier this year, research revealed that over half of UK school and college students are using Chat GPT to ‘cheat’ in their studies – meaning it has already changed the education space forever whether we like it or not. The GoStudent Future of Education Report 2023 also showed that half (50%) of Gen-Z and Gen Alpha have expressed a strong desire to learn about AI in school.
“Undeniably, the adoption of new technology is exceedingly high in younger people, so we must learn to evolve with the developments of channels such as Chat GPT, as we cannot fight the huge wave of ongoing technological developments. Instead of ignoring these platforms and enabling children to bypass the education system, we should be teaching students how to engage with these platforms effectively, then consequently shift the curriculum to match this and judge them on ‘new world’ skills. GoStudent has a strategic vision for integrating AI into its business, ensuring we develop with technology, rather than against it.”
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Greg Bortkiewicz, Digital Marketing Specialist
“There’s no doubt that ChatGPT caused big waves in the communication industry when it first launched – here was a tool that could seemingly produce content in a fraction of the time it takes humans. But once you look a little closer it’s clear that this isn’t as revolutionary as it seems. While ChatGPT can certainly write a legible article, the content is very bland, formulaic and often quite boring. It misses the human element and expertise that no amount of detailed prompting can help it to deliver.
“And as a research tool? I’ve found it to be useful as one element of any research I undertake, but I certainly wouldn’t take anything as truth before verifying it elsewhere. The best uses that I have found for ChatGPT so far are to help speed up more mundane tasks, such as transcribing a call into coherent paragraphs, or as one form of keyword research for SEO projects.
“Regardless of how revolutionary we may think it is, there are also the ethical and social implications to consider. Who owns the content that ChatGPT produces, and should content be flagged as AI-produced to avoid deceiving readers? There’s a lot to unpack and it will be fascinating to see how the platform continues to develop in 2024.”
Duncan Casemore, CTO and Co-Founder at Applaud
“ChatGPT’s impact on all sectors has been significant. But, this is nothing compared to the change yet to come. While GenAI has attracted widespread attention with its magic-like abilities to generate content, the majority of organisations are still ‘experimenting’ rather than changing roles and processes outright.
“In HR, where we focus, AI awareness is high, but adoption is still limited. There’s been a tech skills gap growing in the people profession and this is widening further with the advent of AI. As a result, the industry hasn’t yet fully grasped AI’s potential to impact both how HR and employees work.
“In 2023, the early adopters have started to see the impact of AI on things like drafting knowledge content and helping employees find information. In 2024 and beyond, the impact will reach another order of magnitude. For example, consider being able to create an entire employee knowledge base with the click of a button, ready for HR to review – previously a year-long project or more for HR. Likewise, imagine a 90% decrease in employee enquiries to HR teams and automating hugely complex onboarding processes.
“These are the sorts of game-changing things we’re working on for organisations as an HR tech provider. ”
Claudia Harris OBE, CEO at Makers
“One year into the GPT3 revolution, many businesses are struggling to deploy it at the scale they hoped when GPT first emerged. Three barriers have reduced adoption: fears about privacy and IP and difficulty linking tools to real business use cases.
“All of that is, however, changing fast. The enterprise version of GPT is eliminating the privacy and IP issues by decoupling GPT inputs from training data and creating IP protections, and critically, businesses are now finding ways to link the tools to real use cases to increase productivity and unleash new capabilities. Recent research from BCG and Harvard showed consultants using GPT could deliver 12% more tasks, 25% quicker for 40% better results.
“Novel updates from ChatGPT Enterprise are the starting guns on what will now be a race to adopt GPT and improve performance across the industry. Those that don’t integrate quickly, will very soon find themselves out of business.”
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Mike King, CMO at AIPRM
“As ChatGPT marks its first anniversary, we’ve witnessed it rewrite the rules of our reality, reshaping industries with an unmatched influence. We’re not just playing with a new toy; we’ve unleashed a force that’s reshaping society. Imagine doodling an idea on a napkin, and, like magic, it transforms into a high-tech website. Picture a digital assistant evolving beyond intelligence, becoming a bespoke oracle in your industry’s nuances. It’s a fundamental shift—streamlining business processes like never before.
“In the marketing and content creation industries, ChatGPT revolutionizes outputs. Content production at the low end becomes cheaper, easier, and faster, freeing resources for quality pieces. From idea to concept, the speed substantially increases, allowing instant copy and visual mockups. While making production efficient, it emphasises thoughtful content strategy, robust editing, and human involvement for nuance. Embracing new paradigms, like Retrieval Augmented Generation, sets businesses apart, offering advantages in content marketing and productivity.
“Year two promises further evolution across various industries. Dismissing ChatGPT is like trying to stop a tsunami with a beach umbrella. ChatGPT isn’t just a tool; it propels industries into a future where creativity knows no bounds.”
Tony Yates, Vice President Engineering at Livi UK
“Across Europe, demand for healthcare has never been higher. Ageing populations and increasing chronic disease prevalence are placing pressure on complex health systems. It’s easy to lose your way as a patient. While for clinicians, delivering care has become more difficult.
“It is no surprise that many hospitals and integrated care systems are looking to AI and tools like Chat GPT to do things differently in healthtech. The current generation of AI and large language models are versatile and powerful but as yet they have no autonomy especially in a clinical setting where safety is of the utmost importance. However, where these tools do win, is their ability to process vast quantities of data and turn it into something useful. For example, working with our 5000+ clinicians we knew that there was an unnecessary administrative burden, as well as multiple systems and complex processes. Research shows doctors spend up to 16 minutes per patient appointment on admin related tasks.
“Large language models, like ChatGPT, can work in the background applying itself to tools like voice-to-text translation for referral letters, prescriptions and medical records. We’ve saved invaluable time by improving the quality of medical notes, coding and smoothing the processes around them. We’ve generated efficiency improvements which could free up to 10,000 additional appointments a month across our markets. And we’ve improved the end-to-end care experience for both our clinicians and patients.”
Ganpath Thanumoorthy, Customer Experience Lead at Firstsource
“ChatGPT has truly transformed industries, triggering a paradigm shift in how individuals and businesses operate. Its unparalleled capacity for rapid data retrieval, lightning-fast searches, and highly efficient communication has been nothing short of revolutionary. From streamlining workflows to enhancing customer interactions, ChatGPT and similar technologies like Google’s AI Bard and X’s Grok, have become indispensable tools across sectors.
”For example, they can act like our personal assistants, offering quick access to information and streamlining tasks to help us juggle our workload effortlessly.
“However, as with the introduction of any innovative technology, some challenges have arisen. Such as creeping concerns that these tools will reinforce biases, present security concerns, and replace jobs. It’s paramount that the companies developing Generative AI technology, and those harnessing it, proactively tackle these concerns so that we can continue to benefit from the unparalleled productivity the technology offers.”
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Hana Rizvic, Head of AI at Intellias
“The introduction of ChatGPT made it abundantly clear that AI will change lives. Generative AI has deservedly won the title of a transformative agent, not only opening doors to rapid innovation but also helping to start conversations with customers and increasing competitiveness within industries. Organisations have been making clear investments into AI already – witnessing its potential to power people in all departments – enabling better productivity and performance and improving processes to better profit the company.
“Equally, research suggests that AI will affect those that don’t embrace the technology. Whilst Elon Musk’s claims that AI will render humans jobless hold no merit, we could witness employees being replaced by other humans who are skilled in AI – perhaps mirroring what we witnessed during the rise of the internet. After all, how many modern jobs are now possible for people who can’t use the internet? AI will soon hold the same importance in our lives, so people must take the time to embrace the technology.”
Matt Rider, VP of Security Engineering EMEA at Exabeam
“ChatGPT and its Generative AI counterparts have been the truly innovative ‘AI’ development to have occurred over the last year. We no longer need to carefully structure our data, we can simply chuck a load of information at ChatGPT without much thought and still gain value from the output. Instead of carefully researching a topic on Google for hours, constructing search-engine friendly queries, and flipping through numerous websites, we now only need to type one question into a Generative AI-powered chatbot and it seems to finally understand us.
“However, while generative AI-powered LLMs are making life easier in numerous ways, we need to be acutely aware of their limitations. For a start, they’re not accurate: GPT-4 Turbo has the most up-to-date data since its inception, but still only contains world knowledge up to April 2023. These systems also hallucinate and have a clear tendency to deliver biased responses. The real concern with ChatGPT is the way these LLMs are presented. They give a ‘human-like’ interaction which inclines us to trust them more than we should. To stay safe navigating these models, we need to be much more skeptical with the data we are given. Employees need in-depth training to keep them up to date with the security risks posed by generative AI and also what its limitations are.”
Josh Mesout, CIO at Civo
“2023 was the year industries decided this is the decade we solve artificial intelligence. With early research beginning as far back as the 1940s, we’ve all been holding our breath, wondering when Artificial Intelligence will live up to the expectations painted by science fiction writers and futurists.
“With the advent of ChatGPT, we’ve been catapulted into the next generation. Although we’ve seen other disruptive developments across the AI ecosystem over the past few years – OpenAI has pushed boundaries in regards to accessibility by lowering the steep learning curve required to gain value from AI.
“Over the next year, we’ll continue to see growth in the number of users adopting AI solutions. The next stage will be incorporating these tools as a part of everyone’s lives, and once they arrive – we’ll wonder how we ever lived without them.”
Matt Fletcher, Client Account Manager at Optix Solutions
“Large language models, such as GPT-3.5, herald a monumental shift in the world of online search, akin to the transformative impact Google had in its early days. This paradigm shift is likely to lead to a massive surge in AI-generated content. However, amidst this sea change, it’s imperative to exercise caution.
“While harnessing AI’s potential is crucial, maintaining a high quality standard for our content remains a non-negotiable priority. In the wake of the Helpful Content Audit in 2022 and subsequent core algorithm updates, the need for human input to curate, refine, and ensure top-tier content cannot be overstated.
“What’s more, as we look to the horizon, contextual AI looms large. As Google and other tech giants continue to invest in enhancing the generative search experience, brands must strive to stand out amidst the evolving digital landscape. Adhering to Google’s increasingly prominent ‘Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness’ (EEAT) guidelines will be pivotal in achieving this.
“Ensuring your content not only resonates but aligns with these guidelines is the golden ticket to thriving in the AI-powered future of search. In summary, large language models represent a seismic shift in the search arena, demanding a balance between AI-driven efficiency and human-driven quality assurance. To thrive, brands must be vigilant, adaptive, and EEAT-compliant in the face of this AI revolution.”
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