OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (Sam Altman) had a dinner and interview with the editors of tech site TheVerge, talking about a number of topics, including GPT-5 criticism, the AI bubble, brain-computer interfaces, and the acquisition of Google Chrome.
GPT-5 Criticism
First, Altman responded to some of the criticism that followed the release of GPT-5 last week. About an hour before Altman's dinner with TheVerge editors, OpenAI pushed out an update that brought back the "warm" qualities of the previous generation of ChatGPT's default model, 4o.
Previously, some users protested OpenAI's withdrawal of the 4o model on social forums Reddit and X. As a result, Altman shot down and quickly brought 4o back online as an optional model for paying users.
"I think we did screw up a few things in this release," he said, "but on the other hand, our API traffic doubled in 48 hours and is still growing. We're running out of GPUs. daily users on ChatGPT are hitting record highs every day. Many users really love the model switching feature. This release has taught us a lesson about what it means to upgrade a product for hundreds of millions of people in a single day."
He estimated that the percentage of users in "unhealthy relationships" with ChatGPT was "much lower than 1%", but acknowledged that OpenAI staff had had "many" meetings on the topic. meetings" on the topic.
"There are some people who really feel like they have some kind of emotional connection to ChatGPT, and we've been watching and thinking about those users. And then there are hundreds of millions of other users who don't have a proposed social relationship with ChatGPT, but have become very accustomed to it responding to them in some way, recognizing certain things, and being supportive in some way." Ortmann stated. An anthropomorphic social relationship is one in which a person unilaterally develops an emotional connection to a public figure, virtual character, or media image that is not really a two-way interaction.
ChatGPT's user base has roughly tripled in a year and now has more than 700 million active users per weekday. "Soon, billions of people will be using ChatGPT every day. we're now the fifth largest site in the world, and I think we're steadily on our way to number three (over Instagram and Facebook)," stated Altman, "and after that it's going to be even harder. It's going to be really, really hard for ChatGPT to overtake Google."
Insufficient GPUs
In order to keep expanding, OpenAI needs a lot of GPUs, and that's one of Altman's top priorities. He confidently told those in the room, "You can expect OpenAI to spend trillions of dollars on data center construction in the near future."
"We're having to make some really bad trade-offs right now," he said, "We have much better models that we can't offer to our users because we don't have enough arithmetic power. There are other types of new products and services we want to launch." He said.
AI Bubble
He also believes that the industry is currently in an AI bubble. "When bubbles appear, smart people get overexcited over a little bit of real stuff," he explains. "If you look back at most bubbles in history, like the tech bubble, there was real value behind them. Tech is really important, the internet is really a big thing, but people got overexcited. Are investors as a whole getting overexcited about AI right now? I think so. But is AI also the most transformative technology in a long time? Again, my answer is yes."
brain-computer interface
He also confirmed recent reports that OpenAI is planning to fund a brain-computer interface startup to compete with Elon Musk's Neuralink.
"I think neural interfaces are cool to explore. I hope to be able to get ChatGPT to give a response just by thinking about it." Altman said.
Acquisition Chrome
Altman also hinted at his own ambitions for social media, "I'm interested in whether it's possible to build a cooler social experience with AI."
He added: "If Chrome does sell, we should consider it."
AI Hardware with Ivy
It's going to take us a while, but I'm sure you'll find it well worth the wait," said Altman of OpenAI's AI device with Jonathan Ive. It's a stunning product, and after all, true paradigm shifts in computing are so rare that they've only happened twice in the last 50 years. So, allow yourself to remain expectant and surprised. It's definitely worth the wait."
AGI
Regarding the definition of generalized artificial intelligence (AGI), Altman said, "Perhaps the most meaningful milestone for us was when the majority of research resources were allocated to AI researchers rather than human researchers. But I don't think the shift will be black-and-white; it's more like human researchers are gradually getting assisted by AI, from a little bit of help, to more help, to full support."
Term of office of the CEO
Despite his wide-ranging interests, it's not clear whether managing OpenAI long-term is in his plans. He has said, "I'm not naturally suited to be a public company CEO. can you imagine me on an earnings call?"
As to whether he will continue as CEO in a few years, he replied, "Well, maybe in three years the AI will take over the position. After all, three years is a long time."