Industry Implications for Claude and ChatGPT
Anthropic's development of the AI system, Claude, represents an important example of Constitutional AI in action. Claude, like OpenAI's ChatGPT, is a large language model, but differs in its training approach. Instead of using unsupervised learning that identifies patterns and relationships based on a large amount of data, Claude is trained using a set of defined principles that act as a "constitution" for the AI system.
Governance by Guiding Principles
By aligning the AI system with human intentions, Claude is able to respond to questions based on a set of guiding principles, allowing it to operate within a societally accepted framework. The list of principles used to develop Claude is based on important concepts such as maximizing positive impact, avoiding giving harmful advice, and respecting freedom of choice. These principles enable Claude to operate in a way that upholds American values and, as the legal environment surrounding AI continues to ramp up, could be designed to respect legal and ethical frameworks.
Claude Performance versus ChatGPT
In testing, Claude appears to perform better than ChatGPT in certain areas. For example, Claude is reportedly better at answering some trivia questions related to entertainment, geography, history, and the basics of algebra. Additionally, Claude is better at telling jokes, producing more nuanced and creative jokes than ChatGPT. Claude also tends to follow instructions more closely and can sometimes admit when it does not know the answer to a question, unlike ChatGPT. However, Claude still suffers from some of the same limitations as ChatGPT, such as hallucination, bias, and inaccuracies. Furthermore, Claude has some areas where it performs worse than ChatGPT, such as in math and programming, where it is less skilled and prone to making mistakes. And the most telling of Claude's current limitations is that it can provide answers that don't align with the principles that are supposed to control it.
Industry Use Cases for Constitutional AI
The potential business use cases for Claude are numerous, especially in industries that require high levels of ethical and legal compliance. For instance, financial institutions could use Claude to create a more responsible lending model by ensuring that AI systems are aligned with guiding principles that prioritize fair lending practices. Healthcare providers could also benefit from Claude's Constitutional AI approach by ensuring that medical AI systems prioritize patient privacy and confidentiality. In addition, marketing and advertising companies could use Claude to create more targeted and responsible advertising campaigns that align with consumer protection principles. As the legal and ethical landscape surrounding AI continues to evolve, Constitutional AI models like Claude are poised to play a vital role in ensuring responsible and ethical AI practices across a broad range of industries.
Powering Innovation Ethically and Legally
While Claude has its limitations and challenges, it represents an important step toward creating AI systems that power innovation while also operating ethically and legally. The Constitutional AI approach used to create Claude could be used to supervise and monitor other AI systems, ensuring that they also operate within an ethical and legal framework. Although Claude is currently only accessible through a Slack integration as part of a closed beta test, it is exciting to watch this new paradigm in AI evolve to enable industry innovation minus the fear that accompanies managing ethical and legal standards.
Constitutional AI is a Promising Step Toward Creating a Future Where
AI innovation flourishes
AI equitably benefits society
AI upholds American and global values