OpenAI CEO confirms biz is not currently training GPT-5

Plus: Elon Musk wants Twitter to develop generative AI, and ChatGPT bots flood Reddit

In brief OpenAI is not training a fifth version of its generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) and is instead focusing on increasing the capabilities of its latest GPT-4 model, CEO Sam Altman confirmed last week.

Altman tuned in remotely to talk speak at a Massachusetts Institute of Technology event, and was quizzed about AI by computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman.

Among the questions Altman fielded was one about the open letter that urged developers to temporarily pause training AI models larger than GPT-4 for six months.

"I think the letter is missing the most technical nuance about where we need to pause … An earlier version of the letter claims we are training GPT-5 right now. We are not, and won't for some time. So in that sense, it was sort of silly. We are doing things on top of GPT-4 that I think have all sorts of safety issues that we need to address", he said.

Altman, however, said there were parts of the letter he supported such as the importance to ensure AI models are safe and aligned with human values.

You can watch a short clip of the event below.

Youtube Video

ChatGPT bots are spamming Reddit

Reddit forums are being flooded with increasing quantities of comments generated by ChatGPT and posted by bot accounts, leaving moderators struggling to deal with the rising volume of spam.

Several subreddits like r/AskHistorians, r/AskWomen, r/AskEconomics, and r/AskPhilosophy have been beset by bots over recent months. Reddit has reportedly removed several hundred bot accounts, but they continue to proliferate on the site posting AI-generated text and inundating automated systems that flag suspicious content, Vice reported. 

These spam bots often promote adult content, illegal drugs, and products sold by dodgy vendors. "The bot problem was already extremely bad and Reddit's automatic anti-spam systems barely help, and by the time they do, it's too late and the bot's existence has generally served its purpose," Reddit user u/abrownn, who moderates r/Technology, posted online.

"Bots on Reddit are overwhelmingly used for simple advertising purposes, not political manipulation like everyone likes to claim," he added. "Most things advertised by these bot accounts are adult oriented: marijuana ... porn, gambling, or they're sold or operated to mass-advertise drop shipped goods, most of which are credit-card skimming scams or deliver different goods than ordered or never deliver at all."

OpenAI launches bug bounty programme

OpenAI is willing to pay up to $20,000 to developers who discover vulnerabilities, bugs, and security flaws in its AI products.

The startup has  partnered with Bugcrowd, a leading bug bounty platform, to manage the programme. Rewards vary according to the severity of flaws, with payments ranging from $200 to $20,000 for exceptional funds. 

"OpenAI's mission is to create artificial intelligence systems that benefit everyone. To that end, we invest heavily in research and engineering to ensure our AI systems are safe and secure. However, as with any complex technology, we understand that vulnerabilities and flaws can emerge," the company said in a statement.

"We believe that transparency and collaboration are crucial to addressing this reality. That's why we are inviting the global community of security researchers, ethical hackers, and technology enthusiasts to help us identify and address vulnerabilities in our systems."

Prompts that subvert content filters designed to make OpenAI's models produce offensive material, a process known as "jailbreaking", is not covered by the bug bounty scheme.

Musk supplies Twitter engineers with shiny new GPUs to build generative AI

Twitter has reportedly purchased around 10,000 GPUs and plans to put them to work developing generative AI models.

It's not clear how those models will be applied yet. It's possible Twitter wants to use it to improve search or boost its advertising potential, Insider reported. CEO Elon Musk has also hired engineers from DeepMind to build a rival ChatGPT product that will have less restrictions and generate text considered less politically correct, according to The Information.

Musk recently signed an open letter calling for an industrywide halt to training large AI models for six months over fears the technology could become too advanced to control. Despite this, he's continuing to develop AI and build new features for his microblogging site.

The new 10,000 GPUs will reportedly operate out of the company's datacenters in Atlanta and Oregon. ®