Will artificial intelligence replace humans? Since the emergence of ChatGPT, humanity has grown increasingly uncertain about the answer to this question. On March 15, 2023, OpenAI unveiled GPT-4, a multimodal pre-trained large-scale model that showcases a groundbreaking leap forward in artificial intelligence capabilities.

First, GPT-4 is more powerful than ChatGPT. For starters, GPT-4 is not only more creative and collaborative than ever before—it can handle tasks involving the generation and editing of text, audio, and images, while also working alongside users to refine both creative ideas and technical writing projects. Second, GPT-4 can process texts exceeding 25,000 words, making it ideal for creating long-form content, expanding conversations, and even enabling use cases like document search and analysis. Finally, GPT-4 introduces a fresh update in its language style: unlike the classic ChatGPT, which has a fixed, somewhat verbose tone and approach, developers—and soon enough, ordinary users as well—can now specify their desired AI “style” and task directly within the system message by simply describing it. This marks the arrival of true "customization" capabilities.

Second, the multimodal large model. In addition to enhanced text capabilities, GPT-4 introduces a new ability—multimodality—enabling it to accept images as input and generate descriptions, classifications, and analytical results. Specifically, after users provide a combination of scattered text and images, GPT-4 can autonomously produce text outputs, such as natural language or code. Whether handling documents containing both text and photos, charts, or even screenshots, GPT-4 demonstrates performance that is just as powerful as when given pure text inputs. Moreover, it leverages test-time techniques originally developed for pure text language models, allowing for further evolution through few-shot learning and chain-of-thought prompting.

Experiments show that GPT-4 performs at a human-level on various professional tests and academic benchmarks. For instance, it passed the simulated bar exam with a score placing it in the top 10% of test-takers—by contrast, GPT-3.5 scored in the bottom 10%.

GPT-4 has made people realize that AI is no longer just a tool or an assistant—it has become a partner capable of communicating, collaborating, competing with, and even surpassing humans. Multimodal large language models serve as the foundation for embodied intelligence, acting like the brain, but they still require a "body" to interact with the physical world. Thus, the next step is to integrate this "brain" with a "body"—such as robots—enabling embodied intelligence that leverages reinforcement learning to gain authentic feedback from real-world interactions and continuously acquire new knowledge. Meanwhile, large language models may profoundly impact—or even merge with—traditional fields like image processing and natural language processing, while also giving rise to innovative applications and challenges across industries such as education, entertainment, and healthcare.

GPT-4 has already attracted a growing number of commercial clients. For instance, Stripe is using GPT-4 to scan business websites and provide summaries to customer support agents, while Duolingo has integrated GPT-4 into its new language-learning subscription tier. Morgan Stanley is developing a GPT-4-powered system that can retrieve information from company documents and deliver it to financial analysts. Meanwhile, Khan Academy is leveraging GPT-4 to build a kind of automated tutor.

GPT-4 has pushed large-scale models to a new height—so much so that it boasts an "overwhelming" and even "breakneck" lead. Tech companies both at home and abroad, including Google and Baidu, will inevitably find themselves in the awkward position of their own products becoming outdated the moment they’re released. Meanwhile, Microsoft, comfortably positioned behind OpenAI, undoubtedly holds a significant advantage and early-mover advantage in this race.

GPT-4 will have a significant impact on the data industry: First, GPT-4 can help improve data quality by eliminating noise, errors, and redundancy, thereby enhancing the value of the data. Second, it will boost data analysis efficiency: GPT-4 can swiftly analyze data based on user questions or instructions, providing clear, comprehensive answers or actionable recommendations. This means GPT-4 can streamline data analysis processes, saving time and reducing costs while optimizing decision-making. Finally, GPT-4 will elevate data innovation capabilities: By creatively generating text content—ranging in type and style—and seamlessly integrating it with images according to user-defined themes or objectives, GPT-4 empowers the data industry to expand its creative horizons, spark new ideas, and unlock greater potential for innovation.

Without a doubt, the release of GPT-4 is a significant milestone—a major technological breakthrough created by OpenAI, pushing AI to an unprecedented and irreversible new height in history.