OpenAI and Google Focus Chatbots on Speed as AI Hype Fades

When OpenAI launched its ChatGPT chatbot in 2022, it looked as if a new generation of artificial intelligence tools was about to transform every corner of the economy and people’s lives. Fast-forward to 2024 and AI features have been added to countless services, but the impact has arguably not been quite so dramatic.

AI has not created vibrant new professions, and neither has it laid waste to entire industries. ChatGPT has seen traffic flatline and dip over the past year, by some estimates, after an early explosion in user growth. Much of the newsflow around the new generation of AI has focused on its downsides — a tendency to perpetuate harmful biases, or its effectiveness in amplifying misinformation.