OpenAI may replace Google Assistant on Android phones with an update to the ChatGPT app
In the latest version of the ChatGPT app for Android, a hidden code was found that triggers a small pop-up window at the bottom of the screen, similar to Google Assistant or Siri Assistant on iPhones. This means that the company OpenAI may replace Google Assistant on Android devices, since ChatGPT could thus be launched in the same way as the aforementioned assistant.
The code was discovered by the AndoridAuthority research team and will actually allow users to use ChatGPT without launching the app itself, but simply by tapping the shortcut icon or even just saying “hey ChatGPT”. In addition, it seems that a new option in the Quick Settings panel on Android devices is planned, which would provide users with another, additional way to access the artificial intelligence bot owned by OpenAI.
Although Android already allows replacing the default digital assistant, such as Alexa or Bixby, it is interesting that OpenAI wants to expand the availability of its AI bot, thus potentially threatening the competition. However, plans can change, so it is not one hundred percent certain that we will see this in practice.
In addition to its potential plan to replace Google Assistant, OpenAI is also opening a GPT store
In addition to this, the company should launch the so-called “GPT store” next week, which it promised last year. This store will allow paying users to create their own versions of ChatGPT and sell them to other people and companies.
These GPT models, or generative pretrained transformers, are built on the same dataset as ChatGPT, but can be tailored to specific features or tasks. Some examples of this would be an AI bot that helps with tech support or one that creates culinary recipes.
Custom bots, however, can be supplemented with knowledge from outside OpenAI databases, so if you’ve written a hundred scientific papers on a topic, you can include all that data in ChatGPT and then ask it research questions.
To create a custom GPT, you will need a ChatGPT Plus or Enterprise subscription account. OpenAI is no doubt trying to drive the kind of innovation and development we’ve seen in smartphone apps since the launch of the iPhone App Store in 2008. However, we’re currently still waiting for more details on these plans, particularly regarding user verification and revenue sharing selling custom bots.