Food, accounting, tanks, Xero and ChatGPT fun
I’ve been having fun with ChatGPT. Is it any wonder Google raised a red flag after Microsoft took a big piece of OpenAI?
The reason for including the image above will become clear if you read to the end.
I’ve largely resisted sticking my oar into tech conversations the last couple of years. But the crazy ass buzz around ChatGPT (in sore need of a rebrand - the current moniker is too staccato) proved irresistible.
There are many ways to assess ChatGPT’s potential. I asked it three questions to which I know the answers and for giggles, asked it to write an advert.
First I asked it to briefly explain the difference between levain and poolish preferments in the context of sourdough bread making. After an explanation of each, ChatGPT said:
In summary, the main difference between a levain and poolish is that levain is made with wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria while poolish is made with commercial yeast. Levain tends to have a stronger, more tangy flavor and a longer fermentation period than poolish, which has a milder flavor and a shorter fermentation period.
Explaining what each is beforehand is OK but was a tad verbose for my liking. That’s a matter of taste (sic) rather than critique as I can imagine many might want to know the details.
Next, I asked it to outline the main issues governing audit assurance. It came back with a comprehensive seven point answer that would do as a starter for a junior trainee. This was confirmed by an analysis on AccountingWeb which summarised ChatGPT’s abilities to answer exam style questions as follows:
On this assurance topic, I’d compare ChapGPT to a very recent joiner at an accounting firm – someone in the first few weeks of their contract…Unlike a new joiner, however, ChatGPT gives answers with an air of confidence even when it’s completely wrong. It’s not afraid to give a garbage answer and back it up with garbage. It’s like having a fresh-faced junior who’s always convinced they’re right, so users need to approach it with a degree of caution.
That’s fair. It’s worth reading the rest of AW’s analysis as it provides insight into strengths and weaknesses that are important to understanding where ChatGPT is today. I’m more interested in where it might be in the near future.
Third, I asked ChatGPT to explain why the German Tiger had a fearsome reputation during WWII. It came up with four plausible explanations that focused on the tank’s physical characteristics, rightly talking about its frontal armour thickness and the 88mm cannon. It also mentioned speed, which is wrong. The Tiger was relatively slow and the narrative failed to mention its tendency to be unreliable. It also claimed that it’s low profile made it hard to hit. Here I think ChatGPT is confusing the Tiger with the Stug III which absolutely benefitted from a low profile and was more versatile as a fighting vehicle than the Tiger. But that’s another story for another ChatGPT analysis.
But for me, the most important omission was a discussion about crew training, a key element in the tank’s relative success. In this sense, ChatGPT doesn’t do nuance terribly well on topics where there are valid alternative or additional explanations. That was something AW picked up on.
Finally, I asked it to write an advert for Xero in the voice of comedian Billy Connolly containing a joke and a song. The outcome made me giggle. Here it is in all its glory:
Hello, my name is Billy Connolly, and I've got a little somethin' to tell ye about a fantastic new accounting software called Xero.
Now, I know ye might be thinkin', "Oh no, not another boring accounting thing!" But let me tell ye, Xero is different. It's like the Taylor Swift of accounting software - it's young, it's fun, and it's got a killer beat.
Now, I know some of ye might be thinkin', "But Billy, I'm not very good with numbers." Well, let me tell ye a little joke to ease yer worries: "Why did the accountant cross the road? To get to the other side of the balance sheet!"
But enough of the jokes, let's get down to business. Xero is easy to use, it's cloud-based, and it's got a great mobile app, so you can take care of your finances on the go. It's also got a song, I tell you what,
"Verse 1: I used to dread the end of the month My paperwork would be a mess But now with Xero, everything is smooth My finances are in the best
Chorus: Xero, Xero, making accounting a breeze Xero, Xero, you'll never want to leave Xero, Xero, the future of finance Xero, Xero, give it a chance"
So come on, give Xero a try. Ye'll be glad ye did. Trust me, I'm Billy Connolly.
It’s corny but that last line cracked me up. It reminded me of the old joke, trust me, I’m an accountant. Jokes aside, I was surprised how well it tapped into Xero’s advertising talking points but missed the firm’s ‘beautiful accounting’ mantra. Even so, I can see ad execs finding ChatCGPT an interesting addition to their creative armoury. And that alone is enough of a reason for Google to sit up.
Commenters have pointed to the fact that Google search has remained largely unchanged for decades and that’s true. Its also a formidable strength. However, I don’t know anyone who, when faced with a question, doesn’t default to Google in order to find an array of possibilities, even when those are larded with ads. Google is the verb of search but as we know from history, all empires eventually fall and Google will be no exception.
I’m far from convinced that ChatGPT combined with Microsoft’s Bing will be the incursive threat that Google imagines. But it is saying something profound that Google recognises the threat from a tool that is radically different yet serves an alarmingly similar purpose to Google Search. It says something even more profound that ChatGPT captured enough of my jaded attention that I spent a solid hour playing with the tool. That’s not happened in a very long time. Why might this matter?
I’m naturally curious and ChatGPT got me exploring stuff in which I’m interested and stuff where I have minimal knowledge. For me, ChatGPT starts to pose the question: what are the possibilities that help me learn more? What paths might ChatGPT lead me down that give me pause for new or fresh explanations? To what extent might ChatGPT inspire creative thinking? This last point is important because all creativity requires inspiration and if ChatGPT can assist then that’s a massive win.
Today, commenters are right to be cautious but then I remember the days when academics were sceptical about Wikipedia. Are those same academics as skeptical today? I’m not although I’m keenly aware of editorial bias, especially on controversial topics. And let’s not forget, ChatGPT relies on text that has already been created and edited by humans.
During my time as a commenter, I was happy to leave AI related topics to others. There were too many hyperbolic claims and I had enough on my plate dealing with current realities rather than pile on to that issue. ChatGPT hasn’t changed my general view on AI, but it has given me something that adds a dimension to knowledge gathering I didn’t expect: Entertainment value. That alone is enough to keep me interested. I suspect it’s enough for many others too.
Let’s see where this goes.