OpenAI says its AI can now do research tasks that would take a skilled human days in worrying update
OpenAI has just passed a major milestone with the release of its new flagship AI model, with ChatGPT now capable of fulfilling the role of an 'automated research intern', completing tasks that would take a skilled human days to complete.
While this remains an impressive feat in theory for those invested in the world of AI, as the capability of leading models is advancing at a rapid rate, it only further cements the threat that the technology poses to the job market with even more roles now effectively made redundant.
This marks a major step forward in OpenAI's overall mission, with the proliferation of agentic and automated AI tools being something that the company believes will only benefit society, even if ChatGPT gets rid of a large number of jobs across the world.
What also spawns from this revelation too are further goals for the future of AI, as OpenAI won't just stop here with what's technically the creation of 'Artificial General Intelligence' (AGI) when continued evolutions are still to be made.
What is an automated research intern?
According to OpenAI's own blog post on the topic, the company aims "to safely build an automated AI researcher that can work under human supervision to further progress on deep leaning and alignment, enabling iterative improvements."
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While this tool could be used for a wide variety of research projects, what OpenAI appear to be employing it for is for what's known as recursive self improvement — something its peer, Anthropic, has warned about in the past, as it's when AI starts to control and direct its own development.
"According to our measurements, we have now reached the goal, announced last fall, of having an automated research intern by September of this year," the post continued.
"By 'research intern', we mean a system that can carry out well-defined research tasks under human direction, including tasks that would take a skilled researcher a few days."
It's unclear exactly how much quicker these tools will be able to complete their tasks in comparison to their human equivalent, but this particular boast implies that it's far quicker, effectively eliminating the need for humans to do any of the work anymore.
What's also likely is that the need for any human supervision is also a temporary measure – tied also to the status of the AI as an 'intern' – and there will come a point in the near future when these tools are operated independently from our control or oversight.
How will AI continue to evolve in the future?
It's only natural that the inevitable next step for this type of AI would be to become fully autonomous, with OpenAI indicating that it is "making strong progress toward creating an automated AI researcher by March of 2028."
The company argues that, "if it is done responsibly, we believe automated AI research will yield models that directly enhance human welfare and advance OpenAI's mission.
"It can bring down the cost of advanced intelligence so that people worldwide can benefit," the statement continues. "We are pursuing this work in part because automated research could help us solve alignment and build defenses against increasingly capable AI."
This then could serve as a part of the seemingly vital cybersecurity protection against the growing threat of 'world-shaking' cyber attacks, with Altman's company noting that "an automated AI researcher can also be an automated safety or alignment researcher.
"More capable, aligned systems could help secure critical infrastructure, defend against dangerous AI agents, and develop new protective measures."