Modern chatbots like ChatGPT can generate dozens of words per second, making them invaluable tools for researching and analyzing large amounts of information.
With over 500 GB of training data and around 300 billion words, AI language models can also answer many factual questions. While ChatGPT helps with many things, users may have heard a lot of controversy surrounding generative AI. That raises questions about how accurate the information ChatGPT provides and whether users can trust it.
Sure, you can use ChatGPT for almost anything – but how accurate is its information? ChatGPT now has hundreds of millions of users. It generates content, helps with brainstorming, writing code, and acts as a general tutor.
But how much should you trust an AI chatbot’s responses?
How does ChatGPT generate responses?
To better understand the quality of information ChatGPT gives you, let’s start by understanding how AI chatbots select their information. ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM), designed to mimic human language.
When it generates a response, it doesn’t do any research or examine web pages. It generates a string of words based on its training data. This means that sometimes, the LLM will hallucinate (i.e. see patterns where there aren’t any and generate incorrect information).
How accurate is ChatGPT?
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| How accurate is ChatGPT? |
ChatGPT has the potential to be accurate, especially for factual questions with clear answers. If a user asks a question with well-established information, ChatGPT will pull relevant data from its training and provide an honest response.
However, chatbots like ChatGPT often make up information when the system encounters new or difficult questions. This is because generative language models are designed to mimic the way humans write, not the way humans think. As a result, ChatGPT’s logical reasoning capabilities are limited.
ChatGPT-4o is accurate 88.7% of the time, according to Massive Multi-task Language Understanding (MMLU). The MMLU test measures the intelligence of large language models, pitting top AI models against each other. However, it is difficult to determine a precise measure of accuracy.
Success rates will always vary depending on the testing method used. These tests are often more useful as a tool to compare LLMs against each other than as a tool to assess whether ChatGPT is accurate in individual conversations.
When is ChatGPT most likely to give false information?
ChatGPT rarely - if ever - hallucinates simple questions. Ask the capital of Canada; you don’t have to worry. ChatGPT is less likely to be a source of accurate information if the information is rare or new.
The less training data it has on a subject, the less likely ChatGPT is to be accurate. Since the model is not using the most recent information on the internet, that means that the most recent information has not been part of its training data.
If users are looking for empirical data, several studies have extensively tested ChatGPT’s accuracy to reveal one clear trend. ChatGPT boasts a very high accuracy rating for common questions.
However, ChatGPT’s tendency to receive frequent updates can also hurt its accuracy and usability. A group of researchers from UC Berkeley and Stanford University found that the chatbot’s ability to identify prime numbers dropped from 84 percent accuracy to just 51 percent over three months. In short, users shouldn’t immediately trust ChatGPT’s responses, at least not without checking the facts first.
How can you improve ChatGPT’s accuracy?
Remember that using ChatGPT is not a one-sided interaction. There are many steps you can take to improve the accuracy of its responses.
Here are 4 ways to get the best answers from ChatGPT:
1. Provide more context
We all get confused sometimes, and artificial intelligence is no exception. If you’re asking about the best city for public transportation, try to be more specific: Which city has the largest subway system? Which city has the most public transportation riders? Which city spends the most money on public transportation?
If you have an ongoing conversation with ChatGPT, it will remember the context and be able to answer more accurately.
2. Ask for sources with clickable links
A game changer for getting accurate information, the latest version of ChatGPT will provide links to sources if you ask for them.
3. Use the latest model
Each new GPT model brings more reliability. The OpenAI o1 model uses chained reasoning, which instructs the model to stop and reason through each step of its response before it starts generating text.
4. Ask in English
ChatGPT works in over 80 languages. However, due to the wide variety of English content on the internet, ChatGPT is most accurate when conversing in English. If you can interact with the AI chatbot in English, this is the best option for getting better results.
Is ChatGPT biased?
ChatGPTThe model’s output is influenced by its training data, which can introduce bias or inaccuracies, and the refinement process, which involves human reviewers. It’s always important to approach the model’s responses critically and verify information from reliable sources when necessary.
Does ChatGPT give the same answers to everyone?
As the ChatGPT model is constantly evolving, you may not always get the same answers over time. If two people use ChatGPT at the same time with the same question, you will most likely get the same answer...
Conclusion
If you only use ChatGPT occasionally, you may not want to pay to upgrade your chatbot. However, subscribing to ChatGPT will increase its accuracy several times.
In fact, GPT-4o is much more accurate and can also search for the latest information on the internet. The GPT-4 language model is the first to release this generation. It is even much more capable than its predecessor, GPT-3.5.
If you are using the free ChatGPT, you can check whether the chat is using GPT-4o by looking for the model dropdown menu at the bottom of each response. In short, ChatGPT almost always tries to provide solutions to users' problems or questions without caring too much about its accuracy. Therefore, users are advised to double-check it.
