Don’t expect too much from AI, after all, it’s not only human…

So many developments seem to be perpetually five years from realisation. In many ways, AI has been the opposite, confounding expectations by a sudden transformation from potentially interesting to existentially threatening.

Like, I suspect many others, I have been experimenting with AI and with ChatGPT in particular. Recently, I set it a fairly straightforward calculation problem. Apologies for my rather careless grammar in the following conversation.

The first thing I learned was the need to phrase the question carefully:

If the inflation rate stays at 2% what is 3200 in 100 years time worth now

ChatGPT

To calculate the future value of money adjusted for inflation, we need to use the formula for compound interest: Future Value = Present Value × (1 + Inflation Rate)^Number of Years In this case, we want to find the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent inflation rate of 2%. Future Value = 3200 × (1 + 0.02)^100 Calculating this: Future Value = 3200 × (1.02)^100 ≈ 3200 × 7.244 Therefore, in 100 years, with a consistent 2% inflation rate, the value of 3200 would be approximately 23,180.80.

Although this wasn’t the answer to the question that I had intended to ask, I was impressed that ChatGPT presented its workings in detail. That’s more than you’d get from an Excel function.

Doing some human learning of my own, I rephrased the question. This time the answer looked a lot more hopeful:

If the inflation rate stays at 2% what is the present value of 3200 in 100 years time

ChatGPT

To calculate the present value of money in the future adjusted for inflation, we need to use the formula for present value: Present Value = Future Value / (1 + Inflation Rate)^Number of Years In this case, we want to find the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent inflation rate of 2%. Present Value = 3200 / (1 + 0.02)^100 Calculating this: Present Value = 3200 / (1.02)^100 ≈ 3200 / 7.244 Therefore, the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent 2% inflation rate, is approximately 441.41.

The next step was to ask the same question with a slightly different value. Pretty much the same calculation and pretty much the same answer from ChatGPT, except this time the calculation was wrong:

If the inflation rate stays at 2.5% what is 3200 in 100 years time worth now

ChatGPT

To calculate the present value of money adjusted for inflation, we can use the formula for present value: Present Value = Future Value / (1 + Inflation Rate)^Number of Years In this case, we want to find the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent inflation rate of 2.5%. Present Value = 3200 / (1 + 0.025)^100 Calculating this: Present Value = 3200 / (1.025)^100 ≈ 3200 / 7.1779 Therefore, the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent 2.5% inflation rate, is approximately 445.44.

 1.025^100 is not 7.1779

I gave ChatGPT another chance:

If the inflation rate stays at 3% what is 3200 in 100 years time worth now

ChatGPT

To calculate the present value of money adjusted for inflation, we can use the formula for present value: Present Value = Future Value / (1 + Inflation Rate)^Number of Years In this case, we want to find the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent inflation rate of 3%. Present Value = 3200 / (1 + 0.03)^100 Calculating this: Present Value = 3200 / (1.03)^100 ≈ 3200 / 5.743 Therefore, the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent 3% inflation rate, is approximately 557.11.

Another incorrect calculation.

I left it from a day or two and then thought I’d challenge ChatGPT to re-examine its calculation:

Is this calculation correct: Present Value = 3200 / (1.025)^100 ≈ 3200 / 7.1779

ChatGPT

Apologies for the incorrect calculation in the previous response. Let's recalculate it correctly: Present Value = 3200 / (1.03)^100 ≈ 3200 / 19.137 Therefore, the present value of 3200 in 100 years, assuming a consistent 3% inflation rate, is approximately 167.13.

ChatGPT was obviously very polite, and this time the calculation was a lot closer. However, what surprised me the most was that it had realised that the error had occurred in a previous response that had been given quite some time before. 

The obvious question to ask was why the error had occurred in the first place, so I did:

Thanks for the corrected answer. Why was it incorrect the first time?

ChatGPT

I apologize for the confusion caused by the incorrect calculation in my initial response. The error occurred because I mistakenly used the wrong inflation rate of 2.5% instead of the intended rate of 3%. As a result, the calculated present value was incorrect. I apologize for any inconvenience caused and appreciate your understanding.

It was nice of ChatGPT to explain, even if the explanation wasn’t very convincing. I didn’t want to leave the conversation with ChatGPT on a sour note, so I went for a conciliatory response.

Thanks. We all make mistakes.

ChatGPT

Thank you for your understanding and kind words. Indeed, mistakes can happen to anyone, including AI models. I strive to provide accurate and reliable information, but I'm not immune to errors. If you have any more questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask.

I thought you were going to say that you were only human...

ChatGPT

As an AI language model, I don't possess human qualities or limitations. I don't experience emotions or physicality like humans do. While I can simulate human-like conversation and provide information, I am ultimately an algorithmic program created by OpenAI. My purpose is to assist and provide helpful responses based on the data I've been trained on. So, although I don't make mistakes due to being human, I can still have inaccuracies or errors in my responses based on the limitations of my training data and algorithms.