OpenAI launched its latest flagship language model GPT-4o today, and after seeing the demos, one thing is clear – human tutors may soon be obsolete. The “o” in GPT-4o stands for “omni”, referring to the model’s groundbreaking multimodal capabilities that allow it to seamlessly process and respond to text, images, audio, and video in real-time.
Building on the already impressive GPT-4, this update makes the interaction with AI feel “much more natural and far, far easier,” according to OpenAI CTO Mira Murati. As The Verge reports, GPT-4o responds to voice inputs in an average of just 320 milliseconds – on par with typical human response times in conversation. It can modulate its synthesized voice to convey emotion, crack jokes, and even sing.
But the real game-changer is how GPT-4o can serve as an interactive tutor and study buddy. In a live demo, GPT-4o provided patient, step-by-step guidance to solve a math problem written on a piece of paper, just by “seeing” it through the camera.
You can even interrupt the AI mid-sentence to ask clarifying questions, making it eerily similar to how you could interact with a tutor sitting next to you.
With the ability to view and discuss images, text, and video content shared by the user, the opportunities for personalized learning are endless. Why hire an expensive human SAT prep tutor when you have an infinitely knowledgeable, always available, and endlessly patient AI instructor at your disposal? As a former tutor myself, there’s no way I’d be as good as this (at least when it gets polished)
Of course, education is just one of countless places where GPT-4o is poised to make an impact. It can serve as a multilingual translator, code assistant, and even an emotional support companion that encourages you to breathe and relax when it detects stress in your voice. Like the AI from the movie “Her”, this is the stuff of science fiction coming to life.
But what’s truly remarkable is that OpenAI is not gatekeeping this technology for the wealthy (a big roadblock to students not being able to afford a tutor) – GPT-4o is available starting today for free to all ChatGPT users, albeit with some usage limits unless you have a paid plan.
While there will inevitably be valid concerns around the societal impact of displacing human workers with AI, the potential for democratizing access to high-quality, personalized education and other services is tremendous.
GPT-4o may render some tutoring jobs obsolete, but it could also empower billions around the world to tap into learning and career opportunities previously inaccessible to them. It’s like an extension of when YouTube came out and people across the world instantly got access to shared knowledge from incredible sources.
Of course, GPT-4o isn’t perfect – it still has limitations and makes mistakes as any AI system would. But the progress is undeniable and the pace of breakthroughs is only accelerating. I keep saying it, but even 3 months ago things were completely different.
Buckle up because GPT-4o is just a taste of the disruptive (but hopefully net-positive) AI revolution ahead. May this new omni-capable language model teach the world, one interrupted verbal math lesson at a time.
