This bot can do your homework in the blink of an eye. | Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

Artificial intelligence has reached a new evolutionary level. In late 2022, a major stir was caused by an optimised chatbot called ChatGPT, made by the company OpenAI. It has a simple user interface, and its text generator has been extremely well trained to create language that appears natural. Not only can it compose lines of computer code on command, but it can also write essays on a given topic, poems or even song lyrics. “It’s extremely impressive”, said Christopher Potts, a professor of linguistics at Stanford University, when approached by the magazine Wired.

It’s arguably great news for students needing to deliver a brief essay at short notice, but bad news for the lecturers who are supposed to assess them. It’s certainly given Potts food for thought: “It has got me thinking about what I’m going to do on my courses that require short answers on assignments”.