Smoky Quartz’s ChatGPT Secrets Exposed! The Shocking Truth About Virtual Assistants Will Leave You Questioning Everything!
When OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, unveiled the capability for users to construct personalized chatbots last week, it hinted at the imminent realization of autonomous assistants in the workplace—bots capable of performing tasks such as sending emails or organizing documents, ideally without displacing human jobs. At Quartz, we sought to explore this feature’s potential by creating an autonomous assistant for our newsroom, which we dubbed Smoky Quartz.
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Within the builder, we uploaded Quartz’s editorial handbook, a 63-page document serving as our team’s style guide. Now, when a writer encounters common questions while crafting a story—such as whether to use “moon” or “Moon,” or whether to employ “profit” or “profits”—they can simply ask the chatbot for guidance instead of consulting the manual.
ChatGPT
Smoky operates more dynamically than a mere database. Engaging in conversation with the bot, I can request feedback on my writing to align it more closely with Quartz’s style. Can Smoky identify and advise on the use of dreaded zombie nouns, as cautioned on page 21 of our style guide? Can it spot and suggest alternatives for business jargon or sporting slang, expressly prohibited on page 33? While my chatbot may not make me a better writer overall, it does enhance my Quartz-specific writing skills and transforms some of the more tedious aspects of my job, like manual consultation, into a less burdensome experience. If only Smoky Quartz could handle some of my calls as well.
AI ASSISTANTS IN THE WORKPLACE
Could she, though? Other AI assistants claim to automate mundane work tasks, including handling calls. Some can join virtual meetings on your behalf, taking notes, summarizing discussions, and offering advice on pacing and tone. Others pledge to manage your emails like a personal secretary, sifting through inboxes for crucial updates and organizing receipts for invoicing. Moreover, when you decide to transition to a new job, additional AI assistants offer to automate the application process, submitting job applications while you sleep.
Undoubtedly, artificial intelligence has the potential to alleviate some of the routine monotony in modern work. However, the technology still grapples with significant flaws.
When software developer Josh Stir presented a new feature allowing teammates to automate tasks during a virtual meeting, the AI assistant interrupted with a notification, accusing him of dominating the conversation. “Monologue!” it exclaimed, to which Stir responded, “Yes, that’s what I’m here to do,” as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
As for the AI automating job applications, it reportedly achieved only a 0.5% success rate in securing interviews, according to a software engineer’s account to WIRED. Recruiters claim they can discern when a candidate is using artificial assistance. Resume coach Lynda Spiegel has cautioned that the “spray and pray” method of sending numerous applications, whether AI-assisted or not, can strategically harm a candidate.
Even our Smoky Quartz has exhibited its own share of errors. “Smoky is a little uneven—sometimes she gets it right and sometimes she doesn’t, even when her answer’s right there in the guide,” noted my colleague Susan Howson after observing Smoky interpretive-dance its way through style advice. Given these mistakes and idiosyncrasies, it appears that AI is not yet ready to replace human assistant roles.
The idea of hiring one’s own ChatGPT AI assistant raises ethical questions that teams must address, especially as autonomous agents become more prevalent in our work. Should we anticipate that artificial ears will eavesdrop on our professional conversations? Should we compose our correspondence assuming that robotic administrators will read them? And at what point, if ever, can we decline a robot joining the team?
