With news awash with stories about so-called Artificial Intelligence text generators, we asked ChatGPT to write about refreshment outlets in Bitterne Park. The result: we've decided to retain our enormous (human) editorial team. For now...
You've no doubt heard about ChatGPT lately. It describes itself as “a large language model trained by OpenAI designed to answer questions and engage in natural language processing tasks”.
So the task seemed simple: we asked the chat bot to tell us about refreshment places in Bitterne Park. This was the result. (We suggest you don't rely on its reply if you're actually looking for refreshments in Bitterne Park, by the way, as it reads more like a wish list than a serious guide.)
Said ChatGPT:
“[T]here are several refreshment places in Bitterne Park, which is a suburb of Southampton, England. Here are a few examples:
1. The Butchers Hook – a popular gastropub that offers a range of drinks, including local beers and ciders, as well as a menu of classic British dishes and pub food.
2. The Oasis Cafe – a family-run cafe that serves breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea, as well as a range of hot and cold drinks, cakes, and snacks.
3. The Old Chemist Coffee Shop – a cozy coffee shop that offers a selection of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches, cakes, and pastries. It is housed in a historic building that was once a pharmacy.
4. The Juniper Berry – a bar and restaurant that specializes in gin and serves a range of cocktails, as well as a menu of British and international cuisine.
5. Cafe Thrive – a vegan cafe that serves a range of plant-based meals, sandwiches, and snacks, as well as hot and cold drinks.
These are just a few examples of the refreshment places in Bitterne Park. There are also several other cafes, pubs, and restaurants in the area where you can enjoy a meal or a drink.”
While we were pretty unimpressed by the 'factual' information it spurted out (The Old Chemist isn't a coffee shop, and the Butcher's Hook wasn't offering “a menu of classic British dishes and pub food” last time we visited, for example), we enjoyed the subsequent selection of headlines it offered for this piece – and went with the first.
We asked ChatGPT to comment on why information it provided might be incorrect.
It responded: “As an AI language model, I strive to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information possible, but there may be occasions where errors occur due to incomplete or outdated data. Additionally, information about businesses can change rapidly, which may contribute to inaccuracies in my responses. I apologize for any inaccuracies in my previous response and always welcome feedback to improve my accuracy.”
Photo by Jonathan Kemper on Unsplash