ChatGPT, the popular AI chatbot, has experienced a global outage with its operator OpenAI reporting widespread issues. The bot, which engages in human-like conversations and generates readable text on demand, was taken offline just before 11:30am on Tuesday due to “elevated error rates and latency” across its services.
The issue was identified early on Tuesday morning, with some users sharing screenshots of the chatbot responding with generic errors or taking longer than usual to respond. OpenAI attributed the cause to a technical issue, but later reported that it had not fully recovered from the outage.
As one of the world’s most valuable private companies, valued at $300 billion, ChatGPT has become an essential tool for over 500 million users worldwide. The bot’s rapid growth since its launch in November 2022 has led to concerns about job displacement and intellectual property misuse.
The outage comes amidst growing debates about AI’s role in education and the workforce. Some critics argue that AI could lead to job losses, while others believe it can streamline processes and free up time for workers. Meanwhile, students have been using platforms like ChatGPT to cheat on assignments, prompting calls for new skills training to prepare them for an AI-driven future.
In response to concerns about AI’s impact on education, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced plans to teach secondary school children new skills to equip them with AI-powered jobs. A recent study by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology found that AI will play a role in around 10 million workers’ roles by 2035.
Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/chatgpt-down-outage-open-ai-broken-b2767111.html