What implications does ChatGPT have for the Information Management Industry?

It is intended to produce natural language responses, making it useful in a range of business applications where a human-like interaction is desirable.The industry’s adoption of ChatGPT is critical given the interplay of data, technology, security, ethics, privacy, and many more.

Is it worth pursuing and how to best can we proceed?

In light of ChatGPT’s adoption, the Information Management Industry should be aware that it has several implications for them. The value proposition for generative AI is evident in terms of enhancing the user experience, and Microsoft and Google have invested in it. Microsoft recently launched its first model - from a natural language model created by Open AI and integrated with Microsoft Power Apps, which will enable the development of applications with little or no coding. The likelihood of ChatGPT's success for an organization depends on resources available like costs, timeline, and the potential benefits it can bring to their business. The value of ChatGPT lies in its constantly expanding data model. Users testing the free model are helping to grow the dataset, which will, in turn, improve the system’s accuracy. It also has potential areas for improvement and risks or challenges stakeholders needs to be cognizant of.

ChatGPT – a major game-changer for the Information Management Industry

ChatGPT has many opportunities for the industry that leverage the technology strategically. The benefits include but are not limited to:

Increase customer satisfaction

Customer service is a huge area of opportunity for the Information Management Industry.

Keep up with cost and productivity

Content Integration and Document Ingestion processes can also help organizations to reduce costs by eliminating the need for manual processes and streamlining the process of moving data from one system to another. Organizations can reduce their operational costs and increase efficiency, saving you time and money, and being able to focus on more critical tasks.

Improve efficiency through automation and insights

By enabling streamlining business processes for workflows using automation that were previously done by humans, ChatGPT has the potential to increase efficiency and reduce costs. ChatGPT can also be used to generate valuable data-driven insights into customer behavior and preferences, which can be used to identify areas for business improvement like developing more effective strategies for customer engagement and product development.

Quick access to knowledge - increase productivity

Using natural language processing, ChatGPT can recognize the structure and meaning of language which allows it to provide accurate information on demand, making it easier for teams to access the data they need quickly. This saves time for searching for content and information and increases productivity.

Thinking through the potential challenges and ethical concerns surrounding ChatGPT.

To understand where we could be heading, we must reflect on the potential risks, perceived challenges, and ethical concerns of ChatGPT for the Information Management Industry

Limited and biased knowledge

Open AI acknowledges the current limitations of ChatGPT, including the potential to generate incorrect information or biased content. The AI has limited knowledge of events or knowledge after 2021, based on when the model was trained. Most often, AI models require lots of training and fine-tuning to reach ideal performance levels.

Security and privacy

Security risks associated with ChatGPT include the possibility of malicious actors gaining access to sensitive information such as passwords and other personal data - potentially leading to the spread of false information or other malicious activities. Privacy issues arise due to the data that ChatGPT collects from its users. This data may include conversations, and personal details such as location, age, and interests. Potentially, ChatGPT may be used to track user behavior and activities and use this data to target users with personalized ads without their consent.

Replacing human jobs

Will ChatGPT replace human jobs? This has been the biggest question of discussion. Many stakeholders have predicted that ChatGPT will be a threat to certain roles as it automates many tasks currently being performed by humans. AI is most powerful in combination with humans, augmenting its capabilities to get work done faster and better.

I do not believe a whole profession will be replaced by ChatGPT, as it is argued that they aren’t capable of many skills that people are great at, like critical thinking, creativity, or strategic decision-making. However, recent developments are also pushing AI technology into a realm thought to be unique like the human mind. The question still remains in the balance.

System complexity

ChatGPT’s models are impractically large to train for most organizations, because of the necessary calculated resources, which can make them expensive and environmentally unfriendly. The model encompasses billions, or even trillions, of parameters.

What is the bottom line?

With the potential to improve efficiency in the Information Management Industry, ChatGPT is still a relatively new technology, and its capabilities are likely to continue to evolve and improve over time. Therefore, the industry’s stakeholders need to understand what this means for them.

A better way to start with is a strategy and roadmap that outlines the benefits, risks, opportunities, and deployment for a foundation model like ChatGPT. This will help determine whether the benefits outweigh the risks for specific use cases. In my view, rapid technological change is disruptive and we need to be prepared for the change.