Can Sam Altman Be Trusted with the Future? | The New Yorker

OpenAI's Genesis and ChatGPT's Rise

The article traces OpenAI's journey, starting with Alec Radford's groundbreaking work on transformer neural networks in 2017. This led to the creation of ChatGPT, capable of generating human-like text. The development highlighted OpenAI's unique approach: focusing on amassing vast amounts of training data rather than network design.

OpenAI's Trajectory and Industry Influence

OpenAI's shift to language models, fueled by significant funding and computing power, resulted in GPT-2 and ChatGPT. Karen Hao's book, "Empire of AI," argues that OpenAI's approach became the industry standard, setting off a global race for AI scale.

Ethical Concerns and Sam Altman's Leadership

The article raises questions about the ethical implications of AI's rapid development. Keach Hagey's book, "The Optimist," focuses on Sam Altman, questioning his trustworthiness to lead the industry toward responsible AGI development. Altman's background and personality are explored to contrast his public image with the ethical questions surrounding his company.

• OpenAI's early focus on creating "good AI" to counter potential threats is discussed.
• The role of massive data sets in training AI models is highlighted.
• The impact of OpenAI's choices on the wider AI industry is analyzed.