The updated ChatGPT that can read emotions, tell bedtime stories and flirt
A new artificial intelligence model which can converse across text, audio, and video in real time has been unveiled by tech company OpenAI.
GPT-4o is the latest version of AI chatbot ChatGPT, and its new features will allow video calling, storytelling and flirting.
The new software will be freely available to all users in the coming weeks.
OpenAI says it works faster than earlier models, has an easier, more conversational tone, and can even identify emotions from visual expressions.
The model can respond to audio in as little as 232 milliseconds, which the company says is similar to human response time.
A live demonstration on Monday using the voice version of GPT-4o showcased the chatbot's ability to communicate and respond to human emotion.
A live demonstration showed off some of GPT-4o's new features, but not everything went exactly as planned
When one of the prompters told GPT-4o he was nervous, the chatbot responded with encouragement, and advised the prompter to "take a deep breath".
Later in the demonstration, another prompter asked the AI model to read their facial expression to judge their emotions. The chatbot decided that he looked "happy and cheerful with a big smile and maybe even a touch of excitement."
The chatbot was even able to "flirt" with researchers - when paid a compliment, it responded: "Stop it, you're making me blush!"
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Other tasks it completed included solving a maths equation step by step, and explaining its reasoning; translating in real-time between Italian and English; and writing computer code.
Researchers also demonstrated the model's ability to adapt its tone, switching voices between telling a bedtime story; singing; sounding "more robotic", or "more dramatic".
But there were some glitches during the live-streamed demonstration. The chatbot mistook a man for a wooden surface at one point, and it also started to solve an equation it hadn't been shown.
And some critics say the capabilities showcased by GPT-4o have already been achieved by other companies.
"Many of the demos seemed familiar because we have seen advanced versions of those demos showcased by Google in their Gemini 1.5 pro launch," Garter analyst Chirag Dekate said.
"While OpenAI had a first-mover advantage last year with ChatGPT and GPT3, when compared to their peers, especially Google, we are now seeing capability gaps emerge," he added.
This week, Google, one of OpenAI's main rivals, is expected to unveil updates to its own AI model, Gemini.
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