OpenAI's GPT-5 is arguably the most anticipated AI model in the history. As early as last year, CEO Sam Altman has been raving about its sophisticated capabilities, to an extent of promising "with a high degree of scientific certainty" that GPT-5 will be smarter than GPT-4.
For context, the executive is on record indicating that GPT-4 "kind of sucks", further indicating that the AI model is mildly embarrassing at best, presumably comparing it to future iterations of the model like GPT-5.
GPT-4 is the dumbest model any of you will ever have to use again, by a lot. It's important to ship early and often, and we believe in iterative deployment.
OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman
While the ChatGPT maker has seemingly remained tight-lipped about the development of GPT-5, recent reports suggest that the company could be preparing for an August launch.
Speaking in a recent episode of the "This Past Weekend with Theo Von" podcast, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman indicated that the new model "feels very fast" while comparing its development to the Manhattan Project.
Perhaps more concerning, the executive indicated that he was a tad nervous about the next-gen technology he'd championed to develop and release to the world.
According to Sam Altman:
"There are moments in the history of science, where you have a group of scientists look at their creation and just say, you know: ‘What have we done?"
The executive admitted that AI was advancing and scaling rapidly, potentially outpacing the oversights put in place to prevent the technology from spiraling out of control. "it feels like there are no adults in the room," added Altman.
While Altman didn't categorically indicate what specifically raised his concern about GPT-5, it potentially suggests that the company is getting ready to ship a product that could pose an existential threat to humanity, as the AI firm doesn't seem to have a firm grasp or control over the model.
Interestingly, Sam Altman previously indicated that AI will be smart enough to prevent AI from causing existential doom, and that the rising concern about the threat the technology poses to society won't be experienced at the AGI moment. Instead, it will whoosh by with surprisingly little societal impact.
Could GPT-5 be OpenAI's stepping stone to AGI?
It's apparent that most tech firms chasing the AI bubble have a similar end goal, (AGI) or artificial general intelligence. However, it is increasingly becoming difficult to get a straight definition, as every tech leader shares a different understanding of the term, seemingly making it a buzzword.
At the very least, Microsoft's multi-billion-dollar partnership agreement with OpenAI defines AGI as a sophisticated AI system with the capability of generating up to $100 billion in profits. By this definition, OpenAI stacks miles behind AGI as it is barely keeping its business operations afloat following recent bankruptcy reports.
OpenAI is under immense pressure from investors to evolve into a for-profit venture by the end of this year or risk losing investor funding, which could open it up to outsider interference and hostile takeovers.
Consequently, Microsoft's partnership with the AI firm is in the crosshairs, with multiple reports alluding that Microsoft (OpenAI's largest backer with a $13.5 billion stake) is holding back its blessings to protect its best interest.
However, a separate report suggests that Microsoft is ready to walk away from the high-stakes negotiations and ride out the rest of its partnership with OpenAI through 2030 as is. Still, OpenAI insiders claim "holding out is Microsoft's nuclear option, and they are just making OpenAI sweat."
OpenAI is reportedly prepared to go to court, citing Microsoft's anti-competitive business practices. Another report indicated that the AI firm could declare AGI prematurely to sever its ties with Microsoft before 2030 by shipping an AI coding agent that supersedes the capabilities of an advanced human programmer, which would automatically cut the tech giant's access to its tech and sophisticated AI models.
Could this model have anything to do with GPT-5? That remains to be seen. Still, Microsoft is in advanced talks to extend its partnership with OpenAI beyond 2030, even after the AI firm achieves the coveted AGI benchmark.
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