I recently tried AI ChatBot (powered by ChatGPT). It’s an app available in the App Store, that you can download and use on your phone or tablet. It is more or less an automated robot that can provide detailed responses to a variety of questions.
I wanted to know first hand what it was like and what it could do.
If you’ve noticed, there has been a lot of buzz around AI generated creations. Writing, photos, videos and so on. Since I have been immersed in writing books, creating digital content and connecting with people, I see more and more of it.
As a writer I have been skeptical about AI from the beginning. The educator in me was equally concerned about the impact it would have on kids. Now that I’ve used it (and spoiler alert…) I like it even less.
I used the free three-day trial. After that it was $25 a month to use. I had access to everything it had to offer for three days and this is what I learned:
AI Generated Responses Were Helpful but Concerning
The app had different sections to it. A place for general questions, jokes, essays and so on. I had some fun with it and asked some questions. You can see the responses it had:
I was surprised how helpful the app could be. These are the things I liked about it:
Pros
Writing Prompts
The Chatbot was great for brainstorming ideas. I could ask for specific keywords on a topic and it helped with writer’s block. It was like a thesaurus for ideas. Plenty of options and ways I could change what I was saying.
As a writer, this was incredibly helpful. Some days my brain just doesn’t want to write and I need to get some stuff done. Having something that gets the creative juices flowing is handy.
Instant Answers
The ChatBot also reminded me of a faster version of Google, where I could ask a question and get a response within minutes.
Most of the answers were very generic. I asked how to cook a Turkey (see its answer above), and the response was run off the mill. Thaw, cook, baste and make sure it’s cooked thoroughly so you don’t get sick.
So I asked some biblical questions too. Again, the answers were standard, but it did reference the correct scriptures.
I was impressed with this aspect. A handy little pocket know-it-all to get fast answers.
Supporting Online Business Ventures
My understanding is that there are ChatGPT programs out there that can help generate keywords for SEO (search engine optimization), which would be incredibly helpful for online businesses. I can’t speak to that specifically, but the keywords it did provide were spot on.
For businesses, creators, writers, bloggers…anyone trying to make an online presence, it might be worth the monthly cost to get ideas for content and titles.
Recap
The benefits of the ChatBot: creative prompts, instant answers, and support for online ventures (SEO and keyword searches).
But for every good thing, there are always issues. This is what I found:
Cons
Plagiarism?
First and foremost, the app wrote descriptive articles and essays based on what you asked.
I asked it to write an essay on Queen Elizabeth 1, and it wrote me a paper I could have slapped my name on and handed in as my own. Some of the essay creation is below👇
This is my biggest concern with AI generated technology, the fact that people (high school students, college/university students, writers, bloggers, authors and so on) can use this technology to write some or all of their creations. And so far there is very little in the way of policing it.
You can imagine the plagiarism that is going to happen.
How Does the Reader Know?
It also means you as the reader have no way of knowing what is AI created and what is written by an individual. If you find an article and expect its author to have done most of the legwork, would you be disappointed if you found out a computer wrote it? Perhaps it depends on the topic but I would like to know who did what.
It isn’t just writing either, it’s videos and images too. If creators don’t source where they got their ideas or products from, no one will know a computer created it.
No Reference to Source
Not only that but the app didn’t specify where it got its information from. I assume it gathered everything from the internet but someone had to put the information out there in the first place. Without being able to fact-check, I don’t know how true it is.
Sure I can go back to Google and research what the ChatBot told me, but that defeats the purpose of the ChatBot.
Computer Generated Isn’t God-Breathed
I decided to ask ChatBot something a little more complex. Seeing as I just wrote a blog post about Teaching Your Children to Pray, I decided to ask “how to teach your children to pray,” as a prompt. And within 2 minutes I had a detailed 10-step guide about how I could help my children pray. It was incredible and scary.
There were no scriptures or references to a specific God. Perhaps if I had been more specific about Christianity, it would have had verses to go along with what it was saying, but a computer can’t choose verses that are God-breathed. It can only choose what humans created it to choose.
The Bible was written with verses that are woven together as a means to teach, encourage, rebuke and show God’s love. A computer can’t show God’s love. It can only discern what is black and white (or computer programming), it doesn’t understand the intangible.
When a Christian writer is creating something, they spend time praying and conversing with God. They lean on Him, refer back to scripture and share their ideas with other Christians. They seek to encourage and help shed light on areas where people may be struggling. Because of all this, their works can have profound impacts. Impacts that can be life-altering because they are God-inspired ideas and therefore His plans. AI-generated writings simply don’t have that.
Where Do We Draw the Line for Inspiration?
As a Christian writer, this is my biggest concern. Everything we write or create should be God-inspired. It should come from biblical perspectives, backed up by God’s word.
If we allow our ideas to be intertwined with what a computer says, how can we say what we are producing is of God? Where do we draw the line?
I don’t have an answer for that.
Recap
Drawbacks of AI-Generated ideas: computer generated ideas, no reference to sources, readers don’t know who created it, ideas aren’t God-inspired, blurry lines.
Final Thoughts
Did I like the automation for gleaning ideas? Of course. But I also can glean ideas from my bible, reading Christian blog posts and books or conversing with Christian people. We are meant to be social beings, to communicate with one another. That is how we stay on track with our ideas. AI won’t tell me if I missed the mark on something I’ve said.
And as Christians, we know the same verse can have different meanings in different contexts. AI also can’t distinguish this. So it may use something that is “correct,” but not in the context of what we want.
ChatGPT and other AI technologies have their benefits. They have their place where they can help everyday people solve problems or gather new ideas. But they have their drawbacks. Without a way to fact-check or reference the source, we don’t know where the information is from. And if people do not state that AI was used in generating their final product, how can we trust their creations as being their own?
It creates a blurry line between creators and consumers. I will continue to use traditional ways of finding ideas for my work. I want my products to be God-inspired and created with His support, not the support of automated technology. Remember just because things make your life easier, doesn’t mean it makes them better!
Whatever new technologies you use, AI, ChatGPT, ChatBots and so on, be sure to fact-check and reference your source. And when you read or see things online, be mindful of the new ways that work is being created!
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