On 30 November 2022, the world changed. The launch of ChatGPT by OpenAI brought generative artificial intelligence (AI) to the mainstream. The news was often met with a hasty Google search of ‘what is ChatGPT?’, followed by the full spectrum of human emotions, from excitement about the possibilities to fear of Skynet and a looming AI apocalypse. The speed with which ChatGPT could generate diverse content, and other programmes such as DALL-E 2 could create works of art from simple descriptions, was incredible.
Although excited by the possibilities, there was also collective relief among medical communications professionals that their jobs were safe, as early exploration revealed ChatGPT’s ‘ego’ prevented it from admitting it didn’t know something. Instead, it tended to embellish and fabricate references. Similarly, copyright challenges around AI-generated images meant that design teams were not about to be replaced. Industry-wide, the approach to generative AI settled into a cautious stand-off. Conversations around innovation became more philosophical: can a machine truly be creative? Has human ingenuity reached its expiration date?
One year on, we have learned a lot. Rather than treating AI as a machine, to get the best results, AI should be seen as an extension of the team. And generative AI agrees. When asked how it would like to be integrated into the creative team, ChatGPT responded: ‘The key is to view me not as a replacement but as a catalyst, enhancing the collective creative intelligence of the team.’
If you challenge AI to generate a symposium title for the launch of a new product in isolation, you will get a series of cliché titles describing the ‘evolving clinical landscape’ or the upcoming ‘paradigm shift’. However, integrate AI into the brainstorming process, take it through the same divergent and convergent exercises as if it were any other member of the team, and it can offer powerful new perspectives. The team no longer needs to huddle around a thesaurus. ChatGPT can be challenged to complete word association exercises, expand a theme or relate a disease to a literary villain. For example, hidradenitis suppurativa emerges as the Moriarty of skin conditions – an enigmatic adversary shrouded in mystery and requiring a persistent, strategic approach for those engaged in the battle. Using generative AI enhances our own lateral thinking and allows us to generate new concepts and associations.
ChatGPT can also be used to critique and review concepts shortlisted by the wider team, streamlining our thinking and identifying potential challenges. Even after a concept has been settled upon, it can be difficult to translate the ideas in our heads into a brief. Programmes like DALLE-2 can help overcome this by generating crude visual representations and mood boards.
However, what makes AI most exciting is its continuous evolution. According to the analysis performed by OpenAI, the updated GPT-4 is already 40% more likely to produce factual responses than the version launched last year. The more we engage with AI, the more we – and it – learn and grow. Looking to the future, the improved accuracy and reliability of generative AI will support more opportunities to apply it directly to content generation. The prospect of being able to rapidly adapt content to reflect the perspectives of different demographics or even individuals could enhance the way that we approach and deliver omnichannel communications.
That being said, AI is not perfect. As with any technological advancement, there is a potential for abuse and misuse. Serious ethical concerns also remain around the perpetuation of stereotypes that urgently need to be addressed, both directly by the AI developers and also by ensuring we maintain a diverse workforce to recognise and challenge biases. However, the partnership between human ingenuity and AI is unfolding as a dynamic force, promising a new era of innovation and possibilities in content generation. Navigating that partnership and figuring out how to enhance efficiency while maintaining quality is going to be an exciting journey.
