Some of the most impressive advancements in AI are the development and release of GPT 3.5 and, most recently, GPT-4o, in addition to lifelike AI avatars and deepfakes. But there have been many other revolutionary achievements in AI — too many to include here.
Here are some of the most notable.
ChatGPT (and the GPTs)
ChatGPT is an AI chatbot capable of generating and translating natural language and answering questions. Though it’s arguably the most popular AI tool, thanks to its widespread accessibility, OpenAI made significant waves in artificial intelligence by creating GPTs 1, 2, and 3 before releasing ChatGPT.
Also: 6 ways ChatGPT can make your everyday life easier
GPT stands for Generative Pre-trained Transformer, and GPT-3 was the largest language model at its 2020 launch, with 175 billion parameters. Then came GPT-3.5, which powers the free tier of ChatGPT. The largest version, GPT-4, accessible through the free version of ChatGPT, ChatGPT Plus, and Microsoft Copilot, has one trillion parameters.
Self-driving cars
Though the safety of self-driving cars is a top concern for potential users, the technology continues to advance and improve with breakthroughs in AI. These vehicles use ML algorithms to combine data from sensors and cameras to perceive their surroundings and determine the best course of action.
Also: An autonomous car that wakes up and greets you could be in your future
The autopilot feature in Tesla’s electric vehicles is probably what most people think of when considering self-driving cars. But Waymo, from Google’s parent company Alphabet, also makes autonomous rides — as a driverless taxi, for example, or to deliver Uber Eats — in San Francisco, CA, and Phoenix, AZ.
Cruise is another robotaxi service, and auto companies like Audi, GM, and Ford are also presumably working on self-driving vehicle technology.
Robotics
The achievements of Boston Dynamics stand out in the area of AI and robotics. Though we’re still a long way from creating Terminator-level AI technology, watching Boston Dyanmics’ hydraulic, humanoid robots use AI to navigate and respond to different terrains is impressive.
DeepMind
Google subsidiary DeepMind is an AI pioneer focusing on AGI. Though not there yet, the company made headlines in 2016 for creating AlphaGo, an AI system that beat the world’s best (human) professional Go player.
Since then, DeepMind has created AlphaFold, a system that can predict the complex 3D shapes of proteins. It has also developed programs to diagnose eye diseases as effectively as top doctors.
Also: What is generative AI and why is it so popular? Here’s everything you need to know