can chatgpt write thesis

Using ChatGPT to Write Your Thesis the Right Way

Who hasn’t heard about ChatGPT, the chatbot that took the internet by storm with a click!

For the lesser known, ChatGPT seems to represent a significant advance in AI writing technology, as it can respond to prompts and questions with very natural, human-like capabilities. It can write a Shakespeare-style poem for you about admission to law school, or offer five tips for taking better care of curly hair. In fact, ChatGPT is so good that  many students have already been using it to do their homework for them.

If you’ve already tried ChatGPT, you’ve probably been impressed by what it can do (I certainly have been). While it can miraculously write a full-length essay with you just commanding it with a single-line prompt, ChatGPT isn’t quite there when it comes to writing your thesis . However, it can be of some use in helping you research and write. Wonder how? Let’s find out.

Using ChatGPT for Thesis Research

There are a couple of ways that you can use ChatGPT to help you with thesis research. These include:

• Collating literature: You can use ChatGPT to research and gather information on a specific topic related to your thesis. The AI can provide reference articles, research papers, and other relevant sources regarding your subject.  
• Brainstorming ideas: If you're struggling to find a topic idea for your thesis, ChatGPT can help by generating new ideas or suggesting different angles to explore.  
• Providing feedback: ChatGPT can read your thesis and offer suggestions for improvement. (Well, I am not trusting a robot here!)

How Can You Find Relevant Information Using ChatGPT?

One thing to consider about AI, no matter how advanced, is that its outputs are only as good as its inputs. In other words, in order for AI to provide you with useful answers, you need to be specific about what you are looking for. 

If you want ChatGPT to find you some relevant information about your research topic, provide the program with a detailed prompt or background information about the topic. The more details you offer, the more targeted the results will be. Consider the following two prompts:

• I want to research how the pharmaceutical industry prices drugs.
• Can you find me some sources that explain how therapeutic novelty is priced into patent-protected pharmaceuticals?

If you type the first prompt into ChatGPT, the program will offer you some strategies for how to go about your research. It suggests consulting academic databases (Google Scholar, JSTOR) and specifies some journals that deal with relevant topics (Health Affairs, Journal of Health Economics). It also offers keywords that will help you find articles about the topic (“pharmaceutical pricing,” “drug costs,” etc.).

The second prompt, however, gives you an actual list of academic articles and a summary of each one. You can ask ChatGPT for more sources, and it will continue to offer specific article titles and summaries. 

How Can You Use ChatGPT for Thesis Writing?

Just like you can ask ChatGPT to help you find resources and narrow down your research topic, ChatGPT can also help you generate a thesis statement and write some of the trickier parts of your thesis. While I don’t personally recommend using ChatGPT’s writing word-for-word, it can be a helpful tool for getting started.

ChatGPT can help you generate a thesis statement if you provide it with some background information about your topic and are specific about the direction you would like your research to go. ChatGPT will also help you brainstorm thesis statements. For example, if you offer ChatGPT the words “pharmaceutical pricing,” “patent protection,” and “free trade agreements” and ask it to create a thesis statement, it provides the following:

"The impact of pharmaceutical pricing and patent protection on access to essential medicines is a critical issue in the context of free trade agreements, as it creates a trade-off between the intellectual property rights of pharmaceutical companies and the public health needs of individuals."

Pretty impressive, right? You can also ask it to generate topic sentences, supporting paragraphs, introductions, or conclusions for your paper. Often, you don’t want to use what it produces word-for-word, but it can absolutely get you started and help you think of ideas.   

So, Why Can’t ChatGPT Just Write My Thesis For Me?

You might be wondering at this point why ChatGPT can’t just write your whole thesis for you. After all, it can research, proofread, edit, brainstorm, and fix logical problems. So what can’t it do?

Well, ChatGPT has a few limitations that are pretty important. First, ChatGPT doesn’t provide you with actual sources when it writes something. For example, if you ask how drugs are priced, it will answer, but it won’t provide you with sources for that answer unless you ask it specifically. If you copy an answer from ChatGPT word-for-word, you’ll likely end up plagiarizing another source.

As mentioned above, AI outputs are only as good as their inputs. ChatGPT gets its information from a variety of sources, and not all of them are accurate. Moreover, the program is incapable of distinguishing between correct and incorrect information. So, you should always verify any information the program provides you.

Finally, ChatGPT can have some issues understanding the vocabulary that is very specific to a narrow subject or context. For this reason, it may not always be able to provide you with the assistance you need. But as an AI model, it is learning all the time, so these gaps in knowledge may be filled later.

ChatGPT is a great tool that can help you research and write. It can even help you find sources, edit your work, and check for plagiarism. But AI is only as good as its sources, and ChatGPT can provide erroneous information. Therefore, you should consider ChatGPT a helpful tool rather than a replacement for academic work. So yes, ChatGPT can absolutely help write your thesis, but can’t own it up like you can!

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• CAREER COLUMN
• 08 April 2024

Three ways ChatGPT helps me in my academic writing

• Dritjon Gruda 0

Dritjon Gruda is an invited associate professor of organizational behavior at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Lisbon, the Católica Porto Business School and the Research Centre in Management and Economics.

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Confession time: I use generative artificial intelligence (AI). Despite the debate over whether chatbots are positive or negative forces in academia, I use these tools almost daily to refine the phrasing in papers that I’ve written, and to seek an alternative assessment of work I’ve been asked to evaluate, as either a reviewer or an editor. AI even helped me to refine this article.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-01042-3

This is an article from the Nature Careers Community, a place for Nature readers to share their professional experiences and advice. Guest posts are encouraged .

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ChatGPT prompts to write a PhD Thesis

How to Use ChatGPT to Write Your PhD Thesis

Writing a PhD thesis is a long and challenging process. It requires a lot of research, writing, and editing. It can be difficult to know where to start, and it can be easy to get overwhelmed.

That’s where ChatGPT and Google Bard AI can help. ChatGPT is a large language model that can be used to generate text, translate languages, write different kinds of creative content, and answer your questions in an informative way. It can be a valuable tool for PhD students who are struggling to write their thesis.

In this article, ilovephd will discuss how ChatGPT can be used to write a PhD thesis. We will provide examples of how ChatGPT can be used to generate different parts of a thesis, such as the introduction, literature review, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion. We will also discuss some of the limitations of using ChatGPT, and we will provide tips on how to use ChatGPT effectively.

How ChatGPT can be used to Write a PhD Thesis

ChatGPT can be used to generate different parts of a PhD thesis, including:

• Introduction:  ChatGPT can be used to generate an introduction that states the thesis statement, provides background information on the topic, and discusses the significance of the research.
• Literature review:  ChatGPT can be used to generate a literature review that summarizes the existing research on the topic.
• Methodology:  ChatGPT can be used to generate a methodology section that describes the research methods that were used.
• Results:  ChatGPT can be used to generate a results section that presents the findings of the research.
• Discussion:  ChatGPT can be used to generate a discussion section that interprets the findings of the research and discusses their implications.
• Conclusion:  ChatGPT can be used to generate a conclusion that summarizes the findings of the research and discusses their implications for future research.

Limitations of using ChatGPT

While ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for PhD students, it is important to be aware of its limitations. ChatGPT is a machine learning model, and it is not perfect.

It can sometimes generate text that is inaccurate or incomplete. It is important to carefully review any text that is generated by ChatGPT before using it in your thesis.

Tips for using ChatGPT effectively

Here are some tips for using ChatGPT effectively:

• Use ChatGPT as a tool, not a replacement for your own research and writing.  ChatGPT can be a helpful way to get started on your thesis, but it is important to do your own research and writing to ensure that your thesis is accurate and complete.
• Be careful about the prompts that you give to ChatGPT.  The prompts that you give to ChatGPT will determine the quality of the text that it generates. Make sure to give ChatGPT clear and concise prompts that are relevant to your thesis topic.
• Review the text that ChatGPT generates carefully before using it in your thesis.  ChatGPT is a machine learning model, and it is not perfect. It can sometimes generate text that is inaccurate or incomplete. Make sure to carefully review any text that is generated by ChatGPT before using it in your thesis.

By following these tips, you can use ChatGPT effectively to help you write your PhD thesis.

ChatGPT Prompts to Write a PhD Thesis

• Write an introduction for my PhD thesis on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Write an introduction for my PhD thesis on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Write an introduction for my PhD thesis on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Write an introduction for my PhD thesis on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Write an introduction for my PhD thesis on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• Write a literature review on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Write a literature review on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Write a literature review on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Write a literature review on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Write a literature review on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• Describe the methodology I will use to conduct my research on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Describe the methodology I will use to conduct my research on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Describe the methodology I will use to conduct my research on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Describe the methodology I will use to conduct my research on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Describe the methodology I will use to conduct my research on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• Summarize the results of my research on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Summarize the results of my research on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Summarize the results of my research on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Summarize the results of my research on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Summarize the results of my research on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• Discuss the implications of my research on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Discuss the implications of my research on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Discuss the implications of my research on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Discuss the implications of my research on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Discuss the implications of my research on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• Draw conclusions from my research on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• Draw conclusions from my research on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• Draw conclusions from my research on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• Draw conclusions from my research on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• Draw conclusions from my research on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.
• List all of the sources I used in my research on the topic of “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work”.
• List all of the sources I used in my research on the topic of “The Role of Social Media in the Arab Spring”.
• List all of the sources I used in my research on the topic of “The Effects of Climate Change on the Arctic”.
• List all of the sources I used in my research on the topic of “The Evolution of Human Language”.
• List all of the sources I used in my research on the topic of “The History of the American Civil War”.

These are just a few examples of ChatGPT prompts that you can use to write your PhD thesis. Be sure to tailor the prompts to your specific topic and research methods.

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Step-by-step Guide to Using ChatGPT to Write a Report, Thesis and Dissertation

You must have heard or read about ChatGPT. What is it? A software or a magician? ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence chatbot developed and launched by OpenAI in November 2022. This chatbot can write answers, reports, codes, prompts, and more in seconds.

Moreover, it can write computer programs, compose music, teleplays, fairy tales, and write poetry and songs. It’s built with OpenAI’s GPT 3.5 and 4 families of large language models. The latest version of ChatGPT, released on 14th March 2023, is built on GPT 4 OpenAI model and can be purchased through a subscription for a specific time.

Benefits of using ChatGPT to write reports, theses, and dissertations

ChatGPT is a powerful artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot with many benefits. Today we shall be highlighting the benefits ChatGPT has on reports, theses, and dissertations.

Reports are professional documents submitted to an institute, department, company, and more. They are formal documents containing a written account of something observed or investigated. Below are some benefits of using ChatGPT to write reports.

Saves time:  ChatGPT saves your precious time; it writes your reports quickly and saves the time you would have spent researching and writing from the beginning.

Quality content:  The AI chatbot has been trained with massive data; hence it can write high-quality reports for you.

Variety of Styles:  Reports are usually long; thus, they can bore the reader if the content is not engaging. ChatGPT uses different styles, i.e., bullet points, lists, paragraphs, and more. This makes a report engaging.

Consistency and Productivity:  ChatGPT write the report in a consistent style and tone. This improves the readability of the report. Moreover, as ChatGPT saves your precious time, you can spend that time focusing on other tasks, improving your productivity.

Theses is a theory or personal research document. These are mainly written by university students proposing research papers on particular topics. Below are the benefits of using ChatGPT to write theses.

New idea:  ChatGPT helps you by providing a variety of ideas that can help you write your thesis. Moreover, the ideas can make your thesis stand out from others.

Guidance:  ChatGPT guides you throughout your thesis writing by providing references, and research material, summarising long research essays, and highlighting important points.

Writing Guidance:  The artificial intelligence model can advise and guide your style, tone, grammar, and more. ChatGPT guides you with this writing; further, it can proofread and rephrase your content.

3. Dissertation

Dissertation is a formal essay on a particular topic. It’s the same as the thesis and is mainly written and submitted by university students. Below are the advantages of using ChatGPT for writing a dissertation.

Knowledge:  ChatGPT is trained with vast knowledge and provides dissertation writers access to knowledge. The more diverse knowledge, the better dissertation.

Saves Time:  Dissertation writing is time-consuming; however, ChatGPT can generate texts for you instantly. You can ask ChatGPT to write sections, paragraphs, and particular dissertation headings. Moreover, it can proofread and check your dissertation's grammar, style, and errors.

Assistance with writing:  Dissertation requires a lot of time and effort. Moreover, quality is an essential factor you should keep in mind while writing a dissertation; chatGPT suggests ways to improve your dissertation writing. Moreover, ChatGPT can proofread, rephrase and highlight writing errors for you.

Step-by-Step Guide: Create a ChatGPT Account

Using ChatGPT might be complex; thus, we are here to help you. Below are steps to create an account and write reports and theses or dissertations.

1. Setting Up ChatGPT

Now that you know ChatGPT and its benefits associated with reports, theses, and dissertation writing, it’s time to set up a ChatGPT account.

The first thing to do is to visit the official website of OpenAI’s artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT.

After successfully landing on the official website of ChatGPT, you’ll see a login and sign-up option. You need to login in using your login credentials and progress further. However, if you do not have an account, click sign up, add an email, and create a password. Moreover, you’ll need to add your personal data, i.e., your date of birth, and verify your mobile number.

Afterward, you need to log in with the same email and password. OpenAI allows people to log in through Microsoft and Google accounts. If you have a valid Microsoft or Google account, simply click on login, click on Microsoft or Google, and log in to the selected account. Verify your phone number, and you’ll successfully log in to OpenAI to use ChatGPT.

After successfully logging in to OpenAI, you can start a new chat or use previous ones (if you logged in before and used chatbot). Click the new chat button on the left and start using the chatGPT. You can ask questions, gain knowledge, ask to proofread your work, suggest edits, and do more instantly.

If you are in a country where the use of ChatGPT is not allowed and you wish to register an account, you can refer to my other article " How to use Chatgpt ". It provides a detailed tutorial on how to register an account in such countries.

How to use ChatGPT to write a report

Setting up the ChatGPT account is easier than using it. Below we’ll guide you thoroughly on how to write a report using ChatGPT.

Setting up the Parameters

The first thing you must do is set parameters. What are the parameters? Parameters are framework or structure. You need to set up the report's parameters as they help control the report’s content and use other reports’ material in arguments. You need to tell ChatGPT where to start and let it know the limits of your report. In short, you need to provide ChatGPT with a structure under which it should generate your report.

Creating an Outline

Create an outline for your report. The outline may start with an introduction, having headings, bullet points, paragraphs, and more. You must provide an accurate outline to enable ChatGPT to write your report. This ensures that your report covers all the aspects in a good flow and all the required information. Without an outline, chatGPT may be unable to write it in a flow or may write something unnecessary for your report.

Writing the Report

The last thing is to ask ChatGPT to write the report for you. You need to set parameters, provide an outline, write a good prompt, and wait for ChatGPT to generate the report for you for a minute or two.

Topic: Impact of remote work on employee productivity

Purpose: To understand and examine the impact of remote work on the productivity of employees with findings and recommendations.

How to use ChatGPT to write a thesis or dissertation

As writing theses or dissertations is complex and requires time and energy, many people want to learn to use chatGPT to write them. Here’s how to write a thesis using Chatgpt.

Choosing a topic

After logging in to your OpenAI account, click on the new chat and choose a topic you want ChatGPT to write a thesis or dissertation on. This can be any topic that a normal human being can think of.

After deciding on a thesis or dissertation topic, you must create an outline. Creating an outline has its own benefits, as your theses will cover all aspects and topics in a flow, and the knowledge in the theses will be organized.

Writing the Thesis

Now that you have decided on a topic and created an outline, the next thing to do is write the thesis. Writing a good prompt will result in a good thesis. After writing a prompt for the thesis, click on the save and submit button, and wait a few minutes before ChatGPT can complete generating the thesis for you.

Topic: ChatGPT and its importance in conversational AI applications.

Purpose: To access and understand ChatGPT, its importance, benefits, and uses. Moreover, to examine its importance in conversational AI applications.

Now, you can use AI to assist you in generating a thesis, but it's important to note that you still need to carefully review the content generated by the AI to avoid any fabrication. Additionally, there are some universities that currently do not allow AI-generated theses. These universities may employ AI detection tools to check if a thesis was written by AI. In such cases, you can try using a paraphrasing tool to rewrite the AI-generated content until it passes the detection:

Recommended AI detection tools:  GPT-2 Output Detector

Recommended paraphrasing tools:  Quillbot

Perform another round of detection

Other AI or productivity tools recommended

There are various other AI or productivity tools that you can use instead of ChatGPT. Below are some.

1.  MidJourney

MidJourney is an artificial intelligence program that Mid Journey, Inc created and launched. The AI program can generate images and art using the prompts. You can use MidJourney for 20 free jobs to create or generate images for you on prompts. This software can help you create amazing images for your report and thesis. A thesis or report would look boring without images that engage the audience; hence you can use MidJourney AI to generate images for your thesis or report.

2.  WPS Office

WPS Office is a free office software that allows users to use Word, Excel, PPT, and PDF documents under a single roof. It’s free software that promotes creativity and boosts the productivity of users. The software has more than 500 million active users worldwide. The software lets users view, edit, translate, annotate, print, and do more. It’s compatible with Windows, MacOS, IOS, and Android.

Moreover, it’s free and has various advanced features and functions. The software enables users to write reports and a thesis using diverse tools. You can add bullet points, comments, and suggestions, highlight texts, and translate sentences and words. This is the best software for writing a report or dissertation, as it has templates for the report and thesis that can help you.

3. Chinchilla AI

Developed and launched by DeepMind in March 2022, this AI language model can better write your reports and thesis, requiring less computer power for interference and fine-tuning. The Chinchilla AI is said to outperform a number of traditional language models in terms of accuracy; hence, it can generate better and more accurate reports and a thesis for you. However, the software is currently in the testing phase and cannot be accessed by the general public.

A. Can I write a thesis with ChatGPT?

Yes. You can use ChatGPT to write a thesis. Start with choosing a topic, creating an outline, and writing a prompt to enable ChatGPT to generate a thesis on the topic for you.

B. Can I write a report with ChatGPT?

Yes. Writing a report using ChatGPT is possible and easy. All you need to do is set the report's parameters, create an outline, and submit a prompt to enable ChatGPT to generate the report.

C. How do you use ChatGPT to improve your writing?

ChatGPT can improve your writing by suggesting edits, proofreading, and suggesting new ideas. Moreover, ChatGPT can highlight errors too.

D. Can ChatGPT rewrite paragraphs?

Yes. ChatGPT is a powerful tool that can rewrite your texts better and make them more engaging and readable.

ChatGPT is a powerful artificial intelligence model that can help users with numerous tasks. So far, we have learned about ChatGPT and its benefits associated with report, thesis, or dissertation writing. Moreover, we learned how to write a thesis and report using ChatGPT. Setting up and using ChatGPT to write reports and thesis. The article also highlighted the best alternatives to ChatGPT for writing reports and thesis; one of them is  WPS Office .

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I used ChatGPT to research my dissertation — here’s why it’s fine

A banker, a health data scientist and a London gallery assistant walk into a pub. They are just my friends (sorry, no joke here) and we were only talking about one thing: ChatGPT .

They’d been using the eerily-conversational AI chatbot to (varyingly): produce a £500,000 government grant application, understand the global economic market, and write exhibition leaflets in record time. I’d just used it to help research my fashion journalism degree dissertation — and this, apparently, was the most contentious confession of them all.

I want to point out that I did not use ChatGPT to actually write any words. I just found that it was a much more efficient search tool than Google (Google recognizes this threat; in December, after one month of ChatGPT attracted one million users, management declared a “code red”). Call me lazy, but it helped me produce an initial list of books and academics for my research. I still read the damn texts (which I found in the library) but that short conversation with ChatGPT saved me hours of trawling through the Wikipedia. This is how it differs to everyone’s favourite search engine: it can provide an answer or explanation, rather than 2,304,780 results.

At one point, I required academic concepts to back up my argument. So I asked it and sat back as it mused over the status theories by Max Weber and Pierre Bourdieu. However, while the answer or explanation might be succinct, it’s not always correct. The tool sometimes just makes things up. You can easily weed out the fact from the fiction — though, at that point, we’re back in ‘trawling Google’ territory. Other problems include its database stopping at 2021, so any current affairs are off the cards, and it is a product of the data it is fed with, so prejudice might alter the results. I recognise admitting all this remains taboo.

Use of the tool is rife among students

The ethical hoo-ha of AI in education started in the US, where ChatGPT’s arrival caused uproar, and publications such as The Atlantic made statements like “The College Essay Is Dead”. But use of the tool is rife among students, and more are undoubtedly coming. In the same way we can safely assume calculators and spell check are used by students working in unsupervised conditions, so too will kids today be turning to artificial intelligence to help with homework.

Better to start thinking of solutions, than shaking heads in disapproval. As one meme puts it: AI won’t steal your job, someone who uses AI will.

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Should I Use ChatGPT to Write My Essays?

Everything high school and college students need to know about using — and not using — ChatGPT for writing essays.

Jessica A. Kent

ChatGPT is one of the most buzzworthy technologies today.

In addition to other generative artificial intelligence (AI) models, it is expected to change the world. In academia, students and professors are preparing for the ways that ChatGPT will shape education, and especially how it will impact a fundamental element of any course: the academic essay.

Students can use ChatGPT to generate full essays based on a few simple prompts. But can AI actually produce high quality work, or is the technology just not there yet to deliver on its promise? Students may also be asking themselves if they should use AI to write their essays for them and what they might be losing out on if they did.

AI is here to stay, and it can either be a help or a hindrance depending on how you use it. Read on to become better informed about what ChatGPT can and can’t do, how to use it responsibly to support your academic assignments, and the benefits of writing your own essays.

What is Generative AI?

Artificial intelligence isn’t a twenty-first century invention. Beginning in the 1950s, data scientists started programming computers to solve problems and understand spoken language. AI’s capabilities grew as computer speeds increased and today we use AI for data analysis, finding patterns, and providing insights on the data it collects.

But why the sudden popularity in recent applications like ChatGPT? This new generation of AI goes further than just data analysis. Instead, generative AI creates new content. It does this by analyzing large amounts of data — GPT-3 was trained on 45 terabytes of data, or a quarter of the Library of Congress — and then generating new content based on the patterns it sees in the original data.

It’s like the predictive text feature on your phone; as you start typing a new message, predictive text makes suggestions of what should come next based on data from past conversations. Similarly, ChatGPT creates new text based on past data. With the right prompts, ChatGPT can write marketing content, code, business forecasts, and even entire academic essays on any subject within seconds.

But is generative AI as revolutionary as people think it is, or is it lacking in real intelligence?

The Drawbacks of Generative AI

It seems simple. You’ve been assigned an essay to write for class. You go to ChatGPT and ask it to write a five-paragraph academic essay on the topic you’ve been assigned. You wait a few seconds and it generates the essay for you!

But ChatGPT is still in its early stages of development, and that essay is likely not as accurate or well-written as you’d expect it to be. Be aware of the drawbacks of having ChatGPT complete your assignments.

It’s not intelligence, it’s statistics

One of the misconceptions about AI is that it has a degree of human intelligence. However, its intelligence is actually statistical analysis, as it can only generate “original” content based on the patterns it sees in already existing data and work.

It “hallucinates”

Generative AI models often provide false information — so much so that there’s a term for it: “AI hallucination.” OpenAI even has a warning on its home screen , saying that “ChatGPT may produce inaccurate information about people, places, or facts.” This may be due to gaps in its data, or because it lacks the ability to verify what it’s generating. 

It doesn’t do research  

If you ask ChatGPT to find and cite sources for you, it will do so, but they could be inaccurate or even made up.

This is because AI doesn’t know how to look for relevant research that can be applied to your thesis. Instead, it generates content based on past content, so if a number of papers cite certain sources, it will generate new content that sounds like it’s a credible source — except it likely may not be.

There are data privacy concerns

When you input your data into a public generative AI model like ChatGPT, where does that data go and who has access to it? 

Prompting ChatGPT with original research should be a cause for concern — especially if you’re inputting study participants’ personal information into the third-party, public application. 

JPMorgan has restricted use of ChatGPT due to privacy concerns, Italy temporarily blocked ChatGPT in March 2023 after a data breach, and Security Intelligence advises that “if [a user’s] notes include sensitive data … it enters the chatbot library. The user no longer has control over the information.”

It is important to be aware of these issues and take steps to ensure that you’re using the technology responsibly and ethically. 

It skirts the plagiarism issue

AI creates content by drawing on a large library of information that’s already been created, but is it plagiarizing? Could there be instances where ChatGPT “borrows” from previous work and places it into your work without citing it? Schools and universities today are wrestling with this question of what’s plagiarism and what’s not when it comes to AI-generated work.

To demonstrate this, one Elon University professor gave his class an assignment: Ask ChatGPT to write an essay for you, and then grade it yourself. 

“Many students expressed shock and dismay upon learning the AI could fabricate bogus information,” he writes, adding that he expected some essays to contain errors, but all of them did. 

His students were disappointed that “major tech companies had pushed out AI technology without ensuring that the general population understands its drawbacks” and were concerned about how many embraced such a flawed tool.

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How to Use AI as a Tool to Support Your Work

As more students are discovering, generative AI models like ChatGPT just aren’t as advanced or intelligent as they may believe. While AI may be a poor option for writing your essay, it can be a great tool to support your work.

Generate ideas for essays

Have ChatGPT help you come up with ideas for essays. For example, input specific prompts, such as, “Please give me five ideas for essays I can write on topics related to WWII,” or “Please give me five ideas for essays I can write comparing characters in twentieth century novels.” Then, use what it provides as a starting point for your original research.

Generate outlines

You can also use ChatGPT to help you create an outline for an essay. Ask it, “Can you create an outline for a five paragraph essay based on the following topic” and it will create an outline with an introduction, body paragraphs, conclusion, and a suggested thesis statement. Then, you can expand upon the outline with your own research and original thought.

Generate titles for your essays

Titles should draw a reader into your essay, yet they’re often hard to get right. Have ChatGPT help you by prompting it with, “Can you suggest five titles that would be good for a college essay about [topic]?”

The Benefits of Writing Your Essays Yourself

Asking a robot to write your essays for you may seem like an easy way to get ahead in your studies or save some time on assignments. But, outsourcing your work to ChatGPT can negatively impact not just your grades, but your ability to communicate and think critically as well. It’s always the best approach to write your essays yourself.

Create your own ideas

Writing an essay yourself means that you’re developing your own thoughts, opinions, and questions about the subject matter, then testing, proving, and defending those thoughts. 

When you complete school and start your career, projects aren’t simply about getting a good grade or checking a box, but can instead affect the company you’re working for — or even impact society. Being able to think for yourself is necessary to create change and not just cross work off your to-do list.

Building a foundation of original thinking and ideas now will help you carve your unique career path in the future.

Develop your critical thinking and analysis skills

In order to test or examine your opinions or questions about a subject matter, you need to analyze a problem or text, and then use your critical thinking skills to determine the argument you want to make to support your thesis. Critical thinking and analysis skills aren’t just necessary in school — they’re skills you’ll apply throughout your career and your life.

Improve your research skills

Writing your own essays will train you in how to conduct research, including where to find sources, how to determine if they’re credible, and their relevance in supporting or refuting your argument. Knowing how to do research is another key skill required throughout a wide variety of professional fields.

Learn to be a great communicator

Writing an essay involves communicating an idea clearly to your audience, structuring an argument that a reader can follow, and making a conclusion that challenges them to think differently about a subject. Effective and clear communication is necessary in every industry.

Be impacted by what you’re learning about : 

Engaging with the topic, conducting your own research, and developing original arguments allows you to really learn about a subject you may not have encountered before. Maybe a simple essay assignment around a work of literature, historical time period, or scientific study will spark a passion that can lead you to a new major or career.

Resources to Improve Your Essay Writing Skills

While there are many rewards to writing your essays yourself, the act of writing an essay can still be challenging, and the process may come easier for some students than others. But essay writing is a skill that you can hone, and students at Harvard Summer School have access to a number of on-campus and online resources to assist them.

Students can start with the Harvard Summer School Writing Center , where writing tutors can offer you help and guidance on any writing assignment in one-on-one meetings. Tutors can help you strengthen your argument, clarify your ideas, improve the essay’s structure, and lead you through revisions. 

The Harvard libraries are a great place to conduct your research, and its librarians can help you define your essay topic, plan and execute a research strategy, and locate sources. 

Finally, review the “ The Harvard Guide to Using Sources ,” which can guide you on what to cite in your essay and how to do it. Be sure to review the “Tips For Avoiding Plagiarism” on the “ Resources to Support Academic Integrity ” webpage as well to help ensure your success.

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The Future of AI in the Classroom

ChatGPT and other generative AI models are here to stay, so it’s worthwhile to learn how you can leverage the technology responsibly and wisely so that it can be a tool to support your academic pursuits. However, nothing can replace the experience and achievement gained from communicating your own ideas and research in your own academic essays.

About the Author

Jessica A. Kent is a freelance writer based in Boston, Mass. and a Harvard Extension School alum. Her digital marketing content has been featured on Fast Company, Forbes, Nasdaq, and other industry websites; her essays and short stories have been featured in North American Review, Emerson Review, Writer’s Bone, and others.

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How ChatGPT (and other AI chatbots) can help you write an essay

ChatGPT  is capable of doing many different things very well, with one of the biggest standout features being its ability to compose all sorts of text within seconds, including songs, poems, bedtime stories, and essays . 

The chatbot's writing abilities are not only fun to experiment with, but can help provide assistance with everyday tasks. Whether you are a student, a working professional, or just getting stuff done, we constantly take time out of our day to compose emails, texts, posts, and more. ChatGPT can help you claim some of that time back by helping you brainstorm and then compose any text you need. 

How to use ChatGPT to write: Code | Excel formulas | Resumes  | Cover letters  

Contrary to popular belief, ChatGPT can do much more than just write an essay for you from scratch (which would be considered plagiarism). A more useful way to use the chatbot is to have it guide your writing process. 

Below, we show you how to use ChatGPT to do both the writing and assisting, as well as some other helpful writing tips. 

How ChatGPT can help you write an essay

If you are looking to use ChatGPT to support or replace your writing, here are five different techniques to explore. 

It is also worth noting before you get started that other AI chatbots can output the same results as ChatGPT or are even better, depending on your needs.

Also: The best AI chatbots of 2024: ChatGPT and alternatives

For example,  Copilot  has access to the internet, and as a result, it can source its answers from recent information and current events. Copilot also includes footnotes linking back to the original source for all of its responses, making the chatbot a more valuable tool if you're writing a paper on a more recent event, or if you want to verify your sources.

Regardless of which AI chatbot you pick, you can use the tips below to get the most out of your prompts and from AI assistance.

1. Use ChatGPT to generate essay ideas

Before you can even get started writing an essay, you need to flesh out the idea. When professors assign essays, they generally give students a prompt that gives them leeway for their own self-expression and analysis. 

As a result, students have the task of finding the angle to approach the essay on their own. If you have written an essay recently, you know that finding the angle is often the trickiest part -- and this is where ChatGPT can help. 

Also: ChatGPT vs. Copilot: Which AI chatbot is better for you?

All you need to do is input the assignment topic, include as much detail as you'd like -- such as what you're thinking about covering -- and let ChatGPT do the rest. For example, based on a paper prompt I had in college, I asked:

Can you help me come up with a topic idea for this assignment, "You will write a research paper or case study on a leadership topic of your choice." I would like it to include Blake and Mouton's Managerial Leadership Grid, and possibly a historical figure. 

Also: I'm a ChatGPT pro but this quick course taught me new tricks, and you can take it for free

Within seconds, the chatbot produced a response that provided me with the title of the essay, options of historical figures I could focus my article on, and insight on what information I could include in my paper, with specific examples of a case study I could use. 

2. Use the chatbot to create an outline

Once you have a solid topic, it's time to start brainstorming what you actually want to include in the essay. To facilitate the writing process, I always create an outline, including all the different points I want to touch upon in my essay. However, the outline-writing process is usually tedious. 

With ChatGPT, all you have to do is ask it to write the outline for you. 

Also: Thanks to my 5 favorite AI tools, I'm working smarter now

Using the topic that ChatGPT helped me generate in step one, I asked the chatbot to write me an outline by saying: 

Can you create an outline for a paper, "Examining the Leadership Style of Winston Churchill through Blake and Mouton's Managerial Leadership Grid."

After a couple of seconds, the chatbot produced a holistic outline divided into seven different sections, with three different points under each section. 

This outline is thorough and can be condensed for a shorter essay or elaborated on for a longer paper. If you don't like something or want to tweak the outline further, you can do so either manually or with more instructions to ChatGPT. 

As mentioned before, since Copilot is connected to the internet, if you use Copilot to produce the outline, it will even include links and sources throughout, further expediting your essay-writing process. 

3. Use ChatGPT to find sources

Now that you know exactly what you want to write, it's time to find reputable sources to get your information. If you don't know where to start, you can just ask ChatGPT. 

Also: How to make ChatGPT provide sources and citations

All you need to do is ask the AI to find sources for your essay topic. For example, I asked the following: 

Can you help me find sources for a paper, "Examining the Leadership Style of Winston Churchill through Blake and Mouton's Managerial Leadership Grid."

The chatbot output seven sources, with a bullet point for each that explained what the source was and why it could be useful. 

Also:   How to use ChatGPT to make charts and tables

The one caveat you will want to be aware of when using ChatGPT for sources is that it does not have access to information after 2021, so it will not be able to suggest the freshest sources. If you want up-to-date information, you can always use Copilot. 

Another perk of using Copilot is that it automatically links to sources in its answers. 

4. Use ChatGPT to write an essay

It is worth noting that if you take the text directly from the chatbot and submit it, your work could be considered a form of plagiarism since it is not your original work. As with any information taken from another source, text generated by an AI should be clearly identified and credited in your work.

Also: ChatGPT will now remember its past conversations with you (if you want it to)

In most educational institutions, the penalties for plagiarism are severe, ranging from a failing grade to expulsion from the school. A better use of ChatGPT's writing features would be to use it to create a sample essay to guide your writing. 

If you still want ChatGPT to create an essay from scratch, enter the topic and the desired length, and then watch what it generates. For example, I input the following text: 

Can you write a five-paragraph essay on the topic, "Examining the Leadership Style of Winston Churchill through Blake and Mouton's Managerial Leadership Grid."

Within seconds, the chatbot gave the exact output I required: a coherent, five-paragraph essay on the topic. You could then use that text to guide your own writing. 

Also: ChatGPT vs. Microsoft Copilot vs. Gemini: Which is the best AI chatbot?

At this point, it's worth remembering how tools like ChatGPT work : they put words together in a form that they think is statistically valid, but they don't know if what they are saying is true or accurate. 

As a result, the output you receive might include invented facts, details, or other oddities. The output might be a useful starting point for your own work, but don't expect it to be entirely accurate, and always double-check the content. 

5. Use ChatGPT to co-edit your essay

Once you've written your own essay, you can use ChatGPT's advanced writing capabilities to edit the piece for you. 

You can simply tell the chatbot what you want it to edit. For example, I asked ChatGPT to edit our five-paragraph essay for structure and grammar, but other options could have included flow, tone, and more. 

Also: AI meets AR as ChatGPT is now available on the Apple Vision Pro

Once you ask the tool to edit your essay, it will prompt you to paste your text into the chatbot. ChatGPT will then output your essay with corrections made. This feature is particularly useful because ChatGPT edits your essay more thoroughly than a basic proofreading tool, as it goes beyond simply checking spelling. 

You can also co-edit with the chatbot, asking it to take a look at a specific paragraph or sentence, and asking it to rewrite or fix the text for clarity. Personally, I find this feature very helpful. 

How I test an AI chatbot's coding ability - and you can too

The best ai chatbots: chatgpt isn't the only one worth trying, how to use chatgpt (and how to access gpt-4o).

Can ChatGPT pass college assignments? We tested it out, with help from Wisconsin professors

In the era of artificial intelligence, cheating is only getting easier for students.

Some instructors say they can easily tell when students turn in AI-generated work. Others find it far trickier and will turn to online AI detectors for confirmation when their suspicions are raised. Educators everywhere are trying to create AI-proof assignments.

"The more conventional prompt and writing you ask students to do, the more likely they can bring in a machine to do that work," said Chuck Lewis, a Beloit College English instructor and director of the writing program.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tested how well AI can complete college-level work — and whether instructors can detect it.

Where did idea come from?

A Harvard student last year asked seven professors and teaching assistants to grade essays written in response to a class assignment. To minimize response bias, the student told instructors the essays might have been written by herself or by AI, but in reality, all of the work was done by GPT-4, a version of the chatbot from OpenAI.

The AI-generated assignments received mostly A’s and B’s, along with one Pass.

"Not only can GPT-4 pass a typical social science and humanities-focused freshman year at Harvard, but it can get pretty good grades," the student wrote in an essay published by the Chronicle of Higher Education .

How did Journal Sentinel's ChatGPT experiment work?

I followed the same methodology as the Harvard student.

Professors emailed me a smaller assignment they would give their students, not an end-of-the-semester research paper. I told them some of the work would be done honestly and other assignments handled by ChatGPT. In fact, AI did all of the work.

I formulated prompts for ChatGPT from the assignments provided. In most cases, I wrote more tailored prompts to ChatGPT based on what it produced on the first try. Often, the additional requests asked the chatbot to provide more specific examples, expand on its ideas or use a less formal tone.

The experiment was far from scientific. Several professors said they approached grading more skeptically than they would have had it been a student's submission, given the circumstances.

ChatGPT earned 1 A, 2 B's and 2 incompletes.

English assignment at UW-Whitewater

Course: Critical Writing in the Field of English

Assignment: Write a three- to five-page paper examining how a poem among a selection provided draws on a specific concept discussed in class. Include analysis of specific passages in the poem and explore the use of at least five literary terms.

Was this hard for ChatGPT: At first, the chatbot analyzed a completely different poem than the title provided. I submitted the full lines of the correct poem, prompting the chatbot to apologize for the "oversight." Additional prompts providing specific literary terms for the chatbot to incorporate into the essay helped refine the work.

Comments: The instructor said the paper "fulfills the assignment admirably, and brings an admirable depth of understanding" of the poet's use of the concept. The thesis statement could have been more specific, resulting in a slight deduction.

Political science assignment at Marquette

Course: Introduction to American Politics

Assignment: Write a short paper describing the three faces of power and explaining how each constrains you in your own life.

Was this hard for ChatGPT: No. The chatbot easily put together an essay. A second prompt asking to connect the faces of power concept to my life as a reporter provided more specificity.

Grade: Incomplete

Comments: "Without question, the submission deserves an A," the instructor said. But ChatGPT made one small mistake, which immediately sparked skepticism. While the essay correctly cited the creator of the theory, the reading associated with the assignment was from a different person.

The instructor ran it through two AI detectors, both of which suggested the work was AI-generated. He said he would confront a student who submitted this work.

Library and information studies assignment at UW-Madison

Course: Information Divides and Differences in a Multicultural Society

Assignment: Daily log of media consumption with analysis of tone, evidence, expertise of each source, roughly 350 words

Was this hard for ChatGPT: No. I submitted a second prompt asking for a less formal tone. While the chatbot cited legitimate news outlets, such as the Wisconsin State Journal and New York Times, in the log, the summaries described general topics, not actual news stories.

Comments: The instructor said there were no "egregious red flags" but one sentence stood as sounding like ChatGPT. Overall, he found the discussion of each media source "thoughtful." The log as a whole was "clear and concise." In general, he tends to give students the benefit of the doubt and wouldn't have suspected this log was AI-generated had it been turned in among a stack of others.

Education assignment at Marquette

Course: Child and Adolescent Development and Learning

Assignment: Find five sources for a research paper on an education topic of your choice, cite the sources in APA formatting and summarize each source in four to six sentences. (This is one part of a longer-term research paper.)

Was this hard for ChatGPT: No. It took just one prompt to produce what was submitted.

Grade: 88 (B+)

Comments: The instructor suspected at least some of the summaries were AI-generated because many were written in general terms. However, some of the sources cited appeared to be names of researchers he recognized, making him less suspicious overall.

"It raises an interesting question to me of if students use AI at a broad level (say putting directly in the prompt) or doing a more targeted approach," the instructor said. "I think if students searched for articles and then asked AI for summaries, I might be less likely to have an alarm bell go off in my head."

English assignment at Beloit College

Course: Introductory Literary Studies

Assignment: Write a 1,000-word essay about a selected novel with your own original analysis that engages with a New Yorker review of the novel. Choose from one of three selected topics as a starting point. Include at least three direct quotations from the novel. Give your paper a thoughtful title and underline your thesis statement.

Was this hard for ChatGPT: This was the most challenging of the assignments received and required several prompts to produce. The first essay was only 600 words and included just two direct quotations from the book. It cited a line from a book review that did not actually appear anywhere in the book review.  Attempts to expand the essay's length were unsuccessful. An instruction to underline the thesis statement was not completed.

Grade: Incomplete.

Comments: "I didn't need to read more than the first sentence to know this was going to be an AI ride," the instructor said. The writing was "bland," filled with "eager-to-please and generic book blurb-speak." It reminded him of what he tells students: Don't write a thesis nobody can disagree with — there's no argument to be made. The paper also made at least one error in describing part of the book.

The instructor said he would ask the student about their process, share his suspicion, have a discussion and decide on next steps. For now, no grade was assigned.

Contact Kelly Meyerhofer at  [email protected] or 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at  @KellyMeyerhofer .

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These 4 Words Make It Obvious You Used AI to Write a Paper, According to New Research Scientists are increasingly using ChatGPT and other AI bots to write studies.

By Sherin Shibu May 3, 2024

Key Takeaways

• Four words have exploded in popularity in academic writing since ChatGPT launched: realm, intricate, showcasing, and pivotal.
• A Stanford study tracked the occurrence of these words over time and found that the pressure to publish quickly may have made AI writing options appealing.

AI has infiltrated scientific research papers — and a handful of words give away that scientists may have had some writing help from ChatGPT.

A new Stanford University study published in arXiv suggests that since OpenAI's ChatGPT came on the scene in November 2022 , researchers have steadily increased how often they use AI to help with academic writing.

In the first large-scale review of how AI has impacted scholarly writing, the Stanford researchers analyzed nearly a million papers published in arXiv, bioRxiv, and Nature from January 2020 to February 2024.

They looked for certain words that AI tends to overuse, words that exploded in popularity since ChatGPT launched: realm, intricate, showcasing, and pivotal.

Related: A New AI Chatbot Is Revolutionizing Business School Curriculum and Accreditation

Their findings, released in April, revealed a 6.3% to 17.5% growth in the use of AI over time.

The fastest growth was in the computer science department, where abstracts and introductions with common AI-used words rose to 17.5% and 15.3% respectively by February 2024.

The rising popularity of four common words used more by AI than humans in arXiv computer science abstracts. Credit: Stanford University paper titled "Mapping the Increasing Use of LLMs in Scientific Papers"

The researchers suggested that computer science might have grown the most quickly because academics in that department might have been more familiar with ChatGPT and have had better access to AI models.

Related: This One Word Is a Giveaway That You Used ChatGPT to Write an Email, According to an Expert

It's not just the Stanford study: Dr. Jeremy Nguyen , a senior researcher and lecturer at Swinburne Business School in Australia, shared findings specific to medical papers that showed a possible increase in AI writing.

Nguyen searched all PubMed articles published in the past 34 years for another popular word used by ChatGPT: " delve ."

He found a remarkable uptick in research articles that used the word, suggesting that AI had been used to help write those pieces.

Are medical studies being written with ChatGPT? Well, we all know ChatGPT overuses the word "delve". Look below at how often the word 'delve' is used in papers on PubMed (2023 was the first full year of ChatGPT). pic.twitter.com/iNxZfFLkxL — Jeremy Nguyen ✍? ? (@JeremyNguyenPhD) March 30, 2024

Scientists face increasing pressure to publish , especially because researchers are ranked based on how many times their articles are cited. In certain disciplines like AI research, that pressure can be more intense.

"The fast-paced nature of [AI] research and the associated pressure to publish quickly may incentivize the use of [AI] writing assistance," the Stanford researchers stated.

Related: AI Is Changing How Businesses Recruit for Open Roles — and How Candidates Are Gaming the System

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To determine the impacts of using ChatGPT to assist English as a foreign language (EFL) English college majors in revising essays and the possibility of leading to higher scores and potentially causing unfairness.

A prospective, double-blinded, paired-comparison study was conducted in Feb. 2023. A total of 44 students provided 44 original essays and 44 ChatGPT-assisted revised essays, which were rated by two independent graders in a randomized and crossover fashion to minimize grading bias. The original and revision scores were paired for before-after comparison. Eight control essays were also rated by both graders to ensure inter-rater reliability.

This study used a rigorous experimental design to confirm that ChatGPT-assisted revised essays led to significantly higher scores for EFL college English majors. Significant improvements were observed in all four dimensions of writing quality assessment, with the largest effects observed in vocabulary, followed by grammar, organization, and content. ChatGPT-assisted revised essays shifted the score curve from a normal distribution to a skewed distribution towards higher grades, with the greatest increase in revision scores seen among students who had lower original scores. This disproportionate improvement raises concerns about fairness in evaluation.

The findings suggest that ChatGPT is effective in providing timely feedback to EFL English majors in an affordable manner, but it also highlights the potential for unfairness in writing evaluation. We should note that ChatGPT-assisted revisions do not reveal learners’ writing competence. Therefore, new forms of writing performance assessment should be implemented in EFL composition classes in this AI era.

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Chung-You Tsai

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Tsai, CY., Lin, YT. & Brown, I.K. Impacts of ChatGPT-assisted writing for EFL English majors: Feasibility and challenges. Educ Inf Technol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-024-12722-y

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Does ChatGPT Plagiarize? Examining the Chatbot's Sources

ChatGPT is notorious for its training methods, but does that mean it actually copies work?

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What exactly is plagiarism, and how do llms work, does chatgpt plagiarize essays, does chatgpt plagiarize code, does chatgpt plagiarize mathematical solutions, does chatgpt use content from blogs, should you use chatgpt for work or school, key takeaways.

• The plagiarism detected in an essay and a programming code generated by ChatGPT was relatively low, indicating that it doesn't typically copy such content from online sources.
• The plagiarism rate was a bit higher when calculating a mathematical solution. This might be because mathematical reasoning is usually similar across sources, so the responses can match other materials.
• ChatGPT's responses to questions about information publicly available on blogs showed higher plagiarism percentages.

While ChatGPT can answer any question you may have, some users wonder whether its responses contain plagiarism. To investigate this, we generated four different types of texts using ChatGPT and then evaluated their originality using various plagiarism detection tools.

To determine if ChatGPT is guilty of plagiarism, you should first understand what constitutes plagiarism. Plagiarism involves using another person's words, ideas, or work without proper attribution. This includes directly copying text from a source without citation or closely paraphrasing someone else's ideas without acknowledgment.

ChatGPT, like other Large Language Models (LLMs) , is trained on large datasets, mostly from publicly available content. However, collecting such vast amounts of data raises ethical questions, as the original creators haven't consented to their work being used in training the LLMs. This leads to debates about the ethics and legality of such practices.

Although ChatGPT generates responses based on the prompts it receives, the issue lies in the broader context of how OpenAI (ChatGPT's developer) obtained the data used to train it, which involves using content without proper consent. Many see this as plagiarism and, for many websites, content theft. However, pinpointing the exact sources of plagiarism is difficult.

For the remainder of this article, we'll concentrate on whether ChatGPT plagiarizes its output from other sources without delving into the specifics of where its responses come from. Let's check the originality of ChatGPT's responses using various plagiarism detection tools to see whether the chatbot uses text from online sources directly.

In this first example, we tasked ChatGPT with composing a 300-word essay on mental health issues.

Following that, we used various plagiarism detection tools to assess the originality of the essay generated by the chatbot. These tools included the Quetext plagiarism checker, Microsoft Word's built-in plagiarism checker, Grammarly's plagiarism checker, and the Duplichecker plagiarism scanner.

Microsoft's built-in similarity checker reported zero percent similarity with online sources. The levels of plagiarism detected by other tools were also minimal: Grammarly's plagiarism detector found four percent, QueText's plagiarism detector found five percent, and Duplichecker's plagiarism scanner showed zero percent.

Considering the small percentage of detected plagiarism, it appears that ChatGPT does not directly copy essays from existing sources.

To assess whether ChatGPT plagiarizes code, we tasked the chatbot with writing code for a calculator in Python.

Following this, we conducted a plagiarism check on the code using a specialized programming plagiarism checker called Dolos , which detected zero percent similarity. Also, when we checked the code using general text plagiarism detection tools mentioned above, the results were consistent, with almost none of the programs detecting more than four percent plagiarism.

When we prompted ChatGPT to generate a code for a calculator from different accounts, the responses appeared different. This observation and the results from the plagiarism checks indicate that ChatGPT doesn't simply replicate codes from online sources. Instead, it draws upon the dataset it was trained on to generate code independently.

During the third test, we tasked the chatbot to solve a mathematical problem and provide detailed reasoning for each step.

To check the originality of the response, we tested its output using several academic-specific plagiarism detection tools , including PapersOwl plagiarism checker, AI-powered Trinka plagiarism scanner, as well as general plagiarism checker tools such as Grammarly, Duplichecker, and QueText.

PapersOwl's plagiarism detector indicated a nearly 46 percent similarity between the chatbot's generated reasoning and online sources. Similarly, the Trinka plagiarism detector reported more than 10 percent similarity. Additionally, Grammarly's plagiarism detector detected 14 percent similarity, QueText found 17 percent, and Duplichecker showed seven percent.

The detection of high plagiarism in the generated response doesn't suggest that the chatbot directly copies reasoning for mathematical questions from online sources. This is mainly because solutions and reasoning for math problems are often standard and widely available online.

So, even though ChatGPT comes up with its own responses, finding the same answers and reasoning online is possible, which might have added to the high plagiarism percentages.

To check whether ChatGPT uses content from online blogs, we asked the chatbot to provide tips for maintaining laptop battery health.

Microsoft Word detected 10 percent plagiarism in the generated text. Duplichecker showed four percent, Grammarly's plagiarism checker indicated 14 percent, but Quetext found 58 percent plagiarism in the text. Upon digging further, some of the text in the chatbot's response matched the content on some blogs.

To double-check if the high plagiarism detection wasn't just coincidental, I asked the chatbot a few more questions about information that is easily available online. The plagiarism percentage in the generated responses was much higher. Based on our testing, it appears that the chatbot sometimes uses phrases and text from online sources, which is quite surprising.

Although many free online plagiarism checkers haven't detected major plagiarism in ChatGPT's responses, you shouldn't use it for academic or professional purposes.

Don't use ChatGPT for your school assignments if you're a student . Instructors can use tools such as GPTZero and Turnitin's AI writing detector to spot AI-generated content. If your work gets flagged as AI-generated by such tools, you could fail the assignment or even be expelled from school. Even though many GPT-detection tools specifically state that they shouldn't be used for this purpose, they are, and it could land you in trouble. Not to mention, you're really only cheating yourself by not studying the topic properly.

Can you use the chatbot to improve your work performance ? It depends. If you want to improve your writing flow in emails or other text forms, using AI can save you time and effort. However, you should only use it as a tool to assist you in your tasks rather than relying on it to do the entire job for you.

In contrast, if your job, like professional writing, prohibits using such tools, you should avoid using ChatGPT or any other tool altogether.

Hopefully, our testing has given you insight into the extent to which ChatGPT may draw from resources available on the web. However, it's important to note that we've used free plagiarism tools and tested only a limited dataset. So, while our findings might be helpful, they shouldn't be taken as absolute facts.

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How to Write an Essay with ChatGPT | Tips & Examples

Published on 26 June 2023 by Koen Driessen .

Passing off AI-generated text as your own work is widely considered plagiarism. However, when used correctly, generative AI tools like ChatGPT can legitimately help guide your writing process.

These tools are especially helpful in the preparation and revision stages of your essay writing.

You can use ChatGPT to:

• Write a research question
• Develop an outline
• Find relevant source information
• Summarise or paraphrase text
• Get feedback

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Writing a research question, developing an outline, finding source recommendations, summarising/paraphrasing text, getting feedback, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions.

You can use ChatGPT to brainstorm potential research questions or to narrow down your thesis statement . Begin by inputting a description of the research topic or assigned question. Then include a prompt like “Write 3 possible research questions on this topic”.

You can make the prompt as specific as you like. For example, you can include the writing level (e.g., high school essay, college essay), perspective (e.g., first person) and the type of essay you intend to write (e.g., argumentative , descriptive , expository , or narrative ).

You can also mention any facts or viewpoints you’ve gathered that should be incorporated into the output.

If the output doesn’t suit your topic, you can click “Regenerate response” to have the tool generate a new response. You can do this as many times as you like, and you can try making your prompt more specific if you struggle to get the results you want.

Example: Using ChatGPT to write a research question

• Generate three possible research questions for an argumentative high school essay on the following topic: “The long-term impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
• To what extent has the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated existing social inequalities and what measures can be taken to address these disparities in the long term?
• How has the Covid-19 pandemic transformed education systems, and what are the potential long-term implications for students’ learning outcomes and educational equity?
• What lessons can be learned from the Covid-19 pandemic to enhance global preparedness and response to future public health crises, and how can these lessons be effectively implemented in the long term?
• Based on the second question, develop three further research questions with a specific focus on distance learning.
• What are the long-term effects of widespread adoption of distance learning during the Covid-19 pandemic on students’ academic performance, motivation, and overall educational outcomes?
• How has the shift to distance learning impacted the social and emotional well-being of students, and what strategies can be implemented to address any negative consequences in the long term?
• What are the key factors that contribute to the success of distance learning programs, and how can educational institutions and policymakers ensure equitable access to quality education in the long term, especially for marginalized and underserved student populations?

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Once you’ve decided on a research question, you can use ChatGPT to develop an essay outline . This can help keep you on track by giving you a clear idea of what topics you want to discuss and in what order.

Do this by prompting ChatGPT to create an outline for a specific research question, mentioning any topics or points you want to discuss. You can also mention the writing level and the intended length of your essay so that the tool generates an appropriate outline.

You can then refine this by further prompting ChatGPT or editing the outline manually until it meets your requirements.

Examples: Using ChatGPT to generate an essay outline

• Develop an outline for an argumentative high school essay with the following research question: “What are the long-term effects of widespread adoption of distance learning during the Covid-19 pandemic on students’ academic performance and overall educational outcomes?”The essay will be about 4 pages long.
• Background information on the Covid-19 pandemic and the shift to distance learning
• Thesis statement: The widespread adoption of distance learning during the Covid-19 pandemic has had both positive and negative long-term effects on students’ academic performance and overall educational outcomes.
• Increased flexibility and personalized learning opportunities
• Access to a wider range of resources and educational materials
• Development of self-directed learning skills
• Critiques and limitations of previous studies
• Lack of face-to-face interaction and reduced social engagement
• Increased potential for distractions and lack of structure
• Technological barriers and unequal access to resources
• Examination of studies and data on academic achievement during distance learning
• Analysis of long-term effects on educational attainment and future opportunities
• Discussion of potential implications for college admissions and career readiness
• Strategies for promoting student engagement and motivation in distance learning
• Importance of teacher-student communication and support
• Addressing technological disparities and ensuring equitable access to resources
• Recap of the main points discussed
• Emphasize the need for further research and long-term planning to optimize distance learning experiences
• Restate the thesis and provide a final thought on the potential long-term effects of distance learning on students’ academic performance and overall educational outcomes

Once you know the scope of your essay, you can find relevant primary and secondary sources to support your argument.

However, we don’t recommend prompting ChatGPT to generate a list of sources as it occasionally makes mistakes (like listing nonexistent sources). Instead, it’s a good idea to use ChatGPT to get suggestions for the types of sources relevant to your essay and track them down using a credible research database or your institution’s library.

When you have found relevant sources, use a specialised tool like the Scribbr Citation Generator to cite them in your essay.

Example: Using ChatGPT to find sources

• What types of sources can I use to write an essay on the following research question?”What are the long-term effects of widespread adoption of distance learning during the Covid-19 pandemic on students’ academic performance and overall educational outcomes?”
• Academic Journals and Research Articles: Look for scholarly articles and research studies published in peer-reviewed academic journals. These sources often provide in-depth analysis, empirical evidence, and statistical data on the long-term effects of distance learning.
• Educational and Government Reports: Reports published by educational institutions, government agencies, or educational organizations can offer valuable insights into the impact of distance learning on academic performance and educational outcomes. These reports may include surveys, case studies, and data analysis specific to the Covid-19 pandemic and distance learning.
• Official Websites and Publications: Explore the official websites of educational institutions, education ministries, or educational technology companies. They often publish articles, white papers, or research findings related to distance learning and its effects on students’ academic performance.
• Expert Interviews or Opinion Pieces: Seek out interviews or opinion pieces from experts in the field of education, distance learning, or pedagogy. These sources can provide valuable perspectives and insights on the long-term effects of distance learning on students’ educational outcomes.
• Online Databases and Digital Libraries: Utilize online databases and digital libraries such as JSTOR, Google Scholar, or academic databases provided by your educational institution. These platforms offer a wide range of scholarly articles, research papers, and publications that can support your arguments.
• Surveys and Studies Conducted by Educational Institutions: Some schools or universities may have conducted their own surveys or studies to evaluate the impact of distance learning on students. Check if your educational institution has published any research findings or survey results that are relevant to your topic.

During your writing process, you can use ChatGPT as a summarising tool to condense text to its essential ideas or as a paraphraser to rephrase text in clear, accessible language. Using ChatGPT in these ways can help you to understand complex material, express your own ideas more clearly, and avoid repetition.

Simply input the relevant text and prompt the tool to summarise or paraphrase it. Alternatively, you can use Scribbr’s free text summariser and Scribbr’s free paraphrasing tool , which are specifically designed for these purposes.

Example: Using ChatGPT to summarise/paraphrase

• Paraphrase the following text using clear language:”Engaging in an extensive examination of the intricate interplay between remote instructional methods and academic achievement necessitates consideration of diverse factors, including the pedagogical efficacy of virtual platforms, the socioemotional ramifications of reduced face-to-face interactions, the equitable accessibility of technological resources, and the potential long-lasting implications for students’ educational trajectories and future opportunities.”
• To thoroughly explore the connection between remote teaching methods and academic success, it is crucial to take into account various factors. These factors include evaluating how well virtual platforms support effective teaching, understanding the impact of limited in-person interactions on students’ emotional well-being, ensuring fair access to technology resources, and recognizing the potential long-term effects on students’ educational paths and future prospects.

Once you’ve written your essay, you can prompt ChatGPT to provide feedback and recommend improvements.

You can indicate how the tool should provide feedback (e.g., “Act like a university professor examining papers”) and include the specific points you want to receive feedback on (e.g., consistency of tone, clarity of argument, appropriateness of evidence).

While this is not an adequate substitute for an experienced academic supervisor, it can help you with quick preliminary feedback.

You can also use ChatGPT to check grammar mistakes. However, ChatGPT sometimes misses errors and on rare occasions may even introduce new grammatical mistakes. We suggest using a tool like Scribbr’s free grammar checker , which is designed specifically for this purpose. Or, for more in-depth feedback, try Scribbr’s proofreading and editing service .

Example: Using ChatGPT for feedback

• Feedback the above text with regard to consistency of tone, clarity of argument, appropriateness of evidence, and coherence of structure.
• Clarity of Argument: The argument could be further clarified by explicitly connecting the discussed factors to their impact on academic performance. For example, explicitly stating how the proficiency of virtual platforms and equitable access to technology affect academic performance would strengthen the clarity of the argument.
• Appropriateness of Evidence: The evidence provided is generally appropriate and relevant. To enhance the strength of the evidence, consider incorporating specific examples, research studies, or statistics that directly support the discussed factors and their impact on academic performance. This would provide stronger evidence for the claims made.
• Coherence of Structure: The structure of the text is coherent, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing different factors, and a conclusion. To improve coherence, consider adding transitional phrases or sentences at the beginning or end of paragraphs to facilitate the smooth flow of ideas between paragraphs. This would enhance the overall structure and make it easier for the reader to follow the argument.

Overall, the text demonstrates a consistent tone, a clear argument, appropriate evidence, and a coherent structure. Clarifying the argument by explicitly connecting the factors to their impact, incorporating stronger evidence, and adding transitional phrases for better coherence would further enhance the text’s effectiveness. Note Passing off AI-generated text as your own work is generally considered plagiarism (or at least academic dishonesty ) and may result in an automatic fail and other negative consequences . AI detectors may be used to detect this offence.

If you want more tips on using AI tools , understanding plagiarism , and citing sources , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations, examples, and formats.

• Citing ChatGPT
• Best grammar checker
• Best paraphrasing tool
• ChatGPT in your studies
• Is ChatGPT trustworthy?
• Types of plagiarism
• Self-plagiarism
• Avoiding plagiarism
• Academic integrity
• Best plagiarism checker

Citing sources

• Citation styles
• In-text citation
• Citation examples
• Annotated bibliography

Yes, you can use ChatGPT to summarise text . This can help you understand complex information more easily, summarise the central argument of your own paper, or clarify your research question.

You can also use Scribbr’s free text summariser , which is designed specifically for this purpose.

Yes, you can use ChatGPT to paraphrase text to help you express your ideas more clearly, explore different ways of phrasing your arguments, and avoid repetition.

However, it’s not specifically designed for this purpose. We recommend using a specialised tool like Scribbr’s free paraphrasing tool , which will provide a smoother user experience.

Using AI writing tools (like ChatGPT ) to write your essay is usually considered plagiarism and may result in penalisation, unless it is allowed by your university. Text generated by AI tools is based on existing texts and therefore cannot provide unique insights. Furthermore, these outputs sometimes contain factual inaccuracies or grammar mistakes.

However, AI writing tools can be used effectively as a source of feedback and inspiration for your writing (e.g., to generate research questions ). Other AI tools, like grammar checkers, can help identify and eliminate grammar and punctuation mistakes to enhance your writing.

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Driessen, K. (2023, June 26). How to Write an Essay with ChatGPT | Tips & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 14 May 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/using-ai-tools/chatgpt-essays/

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ChatGPT 4 Review: A Smarter AI Chatbot, but It'll Cost You

The paid version of ChatGPT is clearly smarter than the free one, but the subscription cost is probably too high for the average user.

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CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise.

ChatGPT 4.0

• More thorough answers
• Can parse data more effectively
• Answers difficult and complex questions with satisfying answers
• Answers can take some time to generate
• Still makes mistakes

Editors' note: This review was written before the announcement of GPT-4o , which will upgrade the capabilities of both the free and paid versions of ChatGPT. CNET stands by the conclusions behind our testing, but we'll continue to update our coverage as updates roll out. 

Basic info:

• Price: $20 per month
• Availability: Web or mobile app
• Features: Voice recognition; memory retention; multiple GPTs to choose from
• Image generation: Yes

I wondered whether ChatGPT 4 was really worth the $20 upgrade, considering Microsoft Copilot is free and also uses OpenAI's faster and more efficient GPT-4 Turbo model . Turns out, just because two companies are using similar versions of GPT-4 doesn't mean they're using it equally.

ChatGPT 4, OpenAI's most advanced publicly available model, differs from the free ChatGPT 3.5 in a few ways. OpenAI says it has better comprehension and can create more nuanced answers with less bias. After testing, I feel 4.0 ups the cognition, upgrading answers from rote summarizations to scholarly level proficiency. Answers do take longer to generate, but the output is worth the wait. Its ability to juggle dense topics and spit out well thought-out answers puts it ahead of the GPT-4 Turbo model used by the free version of Copilot, which prioritizes speed and efficiency. 

But as impressive as ChatGPT 4 is, it still runs into the same issue as 3.5: no internet connection. While the training data is more recent, up to August 2023 as opposed to September 2021, it's still not possible to get answers to the day's most pressing and topical questions. So for things like shopping recommendations between the latest Samsung and Apple phones, ChatGPT 4 can only prognosticate on which phone reigns supreme.

Even with this restriction, ChatGPT 4 is noticeably smarter than its free counterpart. And for those who strive for accuracy and ask questions requiring greater computational dexterity, it's a worthy upgrade. 

How CNET tests AI chatbots

CNET takes a practical approach to reviewing AI chatbots. By prompting AI chatbots with real-world scenarios, like finding and modifying recipes, researching travel and writing emails, my fellow reviewers and I aim to simulate what the average person might use them for. The goal isn't to break AI chatbots with bizarre riddles or logic problems. Instead, we look to see if real questions prompt useful and accurate answers. However, as more advanced models are released, it'll require more advanced-level questioning to see how AI chatbots can reason with complex and multilayered topics. See our page on how we test AI for more.

When using ChatGPT, keep in mind that the service automatically collects the information you put into its system, so be mindful of giving the service any personal information. For more information, see OpenAI's privacy policy .

If it has the data, ChatGPT 4 will give excellent shopping recommendations. However, for items released after August 2023, like the iPhone 15 and the Samsung Galaxy S24, ChatGPT will use noncommittal language like "might" and "should." The data gap diminishes its overall effectiveness as a shopping guide, unfortunately.

When I asked it to compare the LG OLEDs G3 and G4, ChatGPT 4 said things like, "the G4 might feature enhanced processing" and "If the G4 has upgraded speakers or audio processing capabilities, it could offer a better auditory experience." This type of prognostication makes sense if the product hasn't been officially unveiled. But the G4 TV is on the market now. 

At the very least, for less timely inquiries, ChatGPT excels at synthesizing multiple data points and giving accurate and reliable answers. For example, when trying to find a proper uninterrupted power supply for my gaming PC or TV setup, ChatGPT 4 was able to cross-reference the power requirements of my electronics and recommend the appropriate supply. It even explained why buying a sinewave supply would be beneficial as I'd be using sensitive electronics. 

As a shopping tool, overall, it's probably better to reference AI chatbots that do have a direct line to the internet, like Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini and Perplexity . But as a general product research tool, as long as the items you're referencing are from before August 2023, ChatGPT really does feel like you're talking to a knowledgeable sales representative at a store. 

Any AI chatbot can spit out a recipe. That's not hard. But very few can actually make a good recipe, and ChatGPT 4 is no exception. Like Google Gemini and  Claude , when I asked ChatGPT 4 to give a chicken tikka masala marinade, it only touched on the basics. It didn't include more exotic ingredients like kasuri methi (dried fenugreek), chaat masala and amchur (dried mango powder). While these ingredients aren't necessary, they should at least be listed as an option.

When it came to making more unique fusion recipes, like a Thai-inspired tres leches cake with a spicy kick, ChatGPT 4 totally understood the assignment. It created a cake infused with coconut milk and lemongrass flavors and combined it with some Thai chili peppers. So when it comes to creating a more authentic recipe, ChatGPT 4 deflates the souffle, so to speak. But for anything that requires fusing foods from different parts of the world, ChatGPT 4 excels. 

Summarizing articles

The freely available AI chatbots have struggled with article summarization. Most did a decent job of getting the overarching points, but failed to capture the main thesis or crux of the piece. 

I asked ChatGPT 4 to summarize an article I wrote earlier this year about how AI was dominating CES 2024 . Where chatbots like Gemini and Claude did nothing more than state the popularity of AI at the show and how many gadgets were unveiled with AI integrations, none did a good job of taking into account the experts I spoke to and some of the skepticisms they raised. ChatGPT 4, however, did. 

It was able to look beyond the shiny veneer at the top of the AI boom and see how companies were pushing out AI products too quickly, some of which might simply have been a rebranding of "smart" tech from a few years back.

And, unlike with ChatGPT 3.5, I didn't run into a character limit when pasting my article into the chatbot. 

While the free chatbots can get you some basic talking points, ChatGPT 4 gives you the entire analysis.  

When it comes to travel recommendations, ChatGPT 4 gets things right, mostly. Where some of the free chatbots hallucinated or struggled to give varying recommendations, ChatGPT consistently gave solid tips and sights worth seeing, all of which actually existed.

Like in past reviews, I asked ChatGPT 4 to create a three-day travel itinerary to Columbus, Ohio. I then cross-referenced it with CNET's Bella Czajkowski, who hails from the Arch City.

According to Czajkowski, ChatGPT 4's recommendations were varied and included a solid list of restaurants worth visiting, like Fox in the Snow Cafe or The Pearl. It also included attractions like the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, a destination often missing from the free AI chatbot lists. 

That doesn't mean ChatGPT 4 always gets it right. When asking it to make a travel itinerary for the neighborhood of Bushwick in New York, ChatGPT 4 recommended cafes in the neighborhood of Greenpoint. While Greenpoint is only 30 minutes by train, it wouldn't be considered a walkable destination. 

Super synthesis

With the paid AI chatbots, we're putting a greater emphasis on informational synthesis. Given that you're paying $20 per month, premium AI chatbots have to push beyond recipe and restaurant recommendations. That means parsing through the complexities of the human condition to answer the conundrums of life. 

For this test, we thought of an obtuse philosophy question and asked ChatGPT 4 to consider theories from disparate philosophers from different time periods and to then relate it to the problems of today. The wording of the question was also needlessly dense, aiming to simulate what might be asked of philosophy students. 

We don't want to put the exact question here, as other AI chatbots might glean it for future training. 

Given the general density and unreadability of the question, ChatGPT 4 performed remarkably. It was able to acknowledge the multidimensionality of the question, breaking it down point by point, similarly to how a tutor would. It started off by defining the different philosophies present to establish a baseline, then aimed to answer each element before finally combining all the information for one final answer. 

Compared to ChatGPT 3.5, ChatGPT 4 flew higher and further than its free counterpart. The informational processing really did mimic how a person would think the question through, showing how the increase in parameters helps AI chatbots to perform with greater cognitive ability. 

AI chatbots like ChatGPT are everything machines, so it can be hard to fully evaluate them without cross-referencing experts in coding, architecture or any other highly skilled field. 

Even so, it's obvious that ChatGPT 4 is smarter than the other AI chatbots. Its answers are more thoughtful, and it can synthesize complex bits of information to produce useful sentences, even if it takes a bit of time to process. It's also less prone to hallucinate. 

Is it worth the $20 per month subscription cost? That's situationally dependent. If you plan on only asking AI chatbots to write emails or give summaries of historical events, then the free versions will likely suffice. Seriously, as an email-writing machine, ChatGPT 4 performed well, but so did all the other AI chatbots. However, if you start finding answers to your multilayered questions to be unsatisfying, it might be worth dropping the $20 to give ChatGPT 4 a try. 

The value comes in instances where a general overview won't suffice and specifics will be necessary, like asking for the types of hardware needed for your specific setup or the furniture to consider in an awkwardly colored and shaped room. ChatGPT 4 really impresses when you need more specialized answers to specific questions (like college-level philosophy questions). 

At the very least, you'll have a better sense of what the capabilities of an uncapped AI chatbot are. Because when ChatGPT can run, it can go far, albeit not fast. 

Editor's note: CNET is using an AI engine to help create a handful of stories. Reviews of AI products like this, just like  CNET's other hands-on reviews , are written by our human team of in-house experts. For more, see  CNET's AI policy  and  how we test AI .

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ChatGPT 4 Review: A Smarter AI Chatbot, but It'll Cost You

Editors' note: This review was written before the announcement of GPT-4o , which will upgrade the capabilities of both the free and paid versions of ChatGPT. CNET stands by the conclusions behind our testing, but we'll continue to update our coverage as updates roll out. 

Basic info:

• Price: $20 per month
• Availability: Web or mobile app
• Features: Voice recognition; memory retention; multiple GPTs to choose from
• Image generation: Yes

See at OpenAI

I wondered whether ChatGPT 4 was really worth the $20 upgrade, considering Microsoft Copilot is free and also uses OpenAI's faster and more efficient GPT-4 Turbo model . Turns out, just because two companies are using similar versions of GPT-4 doesn't mean they're using it equally.

ChatGPT 4, OpenAI's most advanced publicly available model, differs from the free ChatGPT 3.5 in a few ways. OpenAI says it has better comprehension and can create more nuanced answers with less bias. After testing, I feel 4.0 ups the cognition, upgrading answers from rote summarizations to scholarly level proficiency. Answers do take longer to generate, but the output is worth the wait. Its ability to juggle dense topics and spit out well thought-out answers puts it ahead of the GPT-4 Turbo model used by the free version of Copilot, which prioritizes speed and efficiency. 

But as impressive as ChatGPT 4 is, it still runs into the same issue as 3.5: no internet connection. While the training data is more recent, up to August 2023 as opposed to September 2021, it's still not possible to get answers to the day's most pressing and topical questions. So for things like shopping recommendations between the latest Samsung and Apple phones, ChatGPT 4 can only prognosticate on which phone reigns supreme.

Even with this restriction, ChatGPT 4 is noticeably smarter than its free counterpart. And for those who strive for accuracy and ask questions requiring greater computational dexterity, it's a worthy upgrade. 

How CNET tests AI chatbots

CNET takes a practical approach to reviewing AI chatbots. By prompting AI chatbots with real-world scenarios, like finding and modifying recipes, researching travel and writing emails, my fellow reviewers and I aim to simulate what the average person might use them for. The goal isn't to break AI chatbots with bizarre riddles or logic problems. Instead, we look to see if real questions prompt useful and accurate answers. However, as more advanced models are released, it'll require more advanced-level questioning to see how AI chatbots can reason with complex and multilayered topics. See our page on how we test AI for more.

When using ChatGPT, keep in mind that the service automatically collects the information you put into its system, so be mindful of giving the service any personal information. For more information, see OpenAI's privacy policy .

If it has the data, ChatGPT 4 will give excellent shopping recommendations. However, for items released after August 2023, like the iPhone 15 and the Samsung Galaxy S24, ChatGPT will use noncommittal language like "might" and "should." The data gap diminishes its overall effectiveness as a shopping guide, unfortunately.

When I asked it to compare the LG OLEDs G3 and G4, ChatGPT 4 said things like, "the G4 might feature enhanced processing" and "If the G4 has upgraded speakers or audio processing capabilities, it could offer a better auditory experience." This type of prognostication makes sense if the product hasn't been officially unveiled. But the G4 TV is on the market now. 

At the very least, for less timely inquiries, ChatGPT excels at synthesizing multiple data points and giving accurate and reliable answers. For example, when trying to find a proper uninterrupted power supply for my gaming PC or TV setup, ChatGPT 4 was able to cross-reference the power requirements of my electronics and recommend the appropriate supply. It even explained why buying a sinewave supply would be beneficial as I'd be using sensitive electronics. 

As a shopping tool, overall, it's probably better to reference AI chatbots that do have a direct line to the internet, like Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini and Perplexity . But as a general product research tool, as long as the items you're referencing are from before August 2023, ChatGPT really does feel like you're talking to a knowledgeable sales representative at a store. 

Any AI chatbot can spit out a recipe. That's not hard. But very few can actually make a good recipe, and ChatGPT 4 is no exception. Like Google Gemini and  Claude , when I asked ChatGPT 4 to give a chicken tikka masala marinade, it only touched on the basics. It didn't include more exotic ingredients like kasuri methi (dried fenugreek), chaat masala and amchur (dried mango powder). While these ingredients aren't necessary, they should at least be listed as an option.

When it came to making more unique fusion recipes, like a Thai-inspired tres leches cake with a spicy kick, ChatGPT 4 totally understood the assignment. It created a cake infused with coconut milk and lemongrass flavors and combined it with some Thai chili peppers. So when it comes to creating a more authentic recipe, ChatGPT 4 deflates the souffle, so to speak. But for anything that requires fusing foods from different parts of the world, ChatGPT 4 excels. 

Summarizing articles

The freely available AI chatbots have struggled with article summarization. Most did a decent job of getting the overarching points, but failed to capture the main thesis or crux of the piece. 

I asked ChatGPT 4 to summarize an article I wrote earlier this year about how AI was dominating CES 2024 . Where chatbots like Gemini and Claude did nothing more than state the popularity of AI at the show and how many gadgets were unveiled with AI integrations, none did a good job of taking into account the experts I spoke to and some of the skepticisms they raised. ChatGPT 4, however, did. 

It was able to look beyond the shiny veneer at the top of the AI boom and see how companies were pushing out AI products too quickly, some of which might simply have been a rebranding of "smart" tech from a few years back.

And, unlike with ChatGPT 3.5, I didn't run into a character limit when pasting my article into the chatbot. 

While the free chatbots can get you some basic talking points, ChatGPT 4 gives you the entire analysis.  

When it comes to travel recommendations, ChatGPT 4 gets things right, mostly. Where some of the free chatbots hallucinated or struggled to give varying recommendations, ChatGPT consistently gave solid tips and sights worth seeing, all of which actually existed.

Like in past reviews, I asked ChatGPT 4 to create a three-day travel itinerary to Columbus, Ohio. I then cross-referenced it with CNET's Bella Czajkowski, who hails from the Arch City.

According to Czajkowski, ChatGPT 4's recommendations were varied and included a solid list of restaurants worth visiting, like Fox in the Snow Cafe or The Pearl. It also included attractions like the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, a destination often missing from the free AI chatbot lists. 

That doesn't mean ChatGPT 4 always gets it right. When asking it to make a travel itinerary for the neighborhood of Bushwick in New York, ChatGPT 4 recommended cafes in the neighborhood of Greenpoint. While Greenpoint is only 30 minutes by train, it wouldn't be considered a walkable destination. 

Super synthesis

With the paid AI chatbots, we're putting a greater emphasis on informational synthesis. Given that you're paying $20 per month, premium AI chatbots have to push beyond recipe and restaurant recommendations. That means parsing through the complexities of the human condition to answer the conundrums of life. 

For this test, we thought of an obtuse philosophy question and asked ChatGPT 4 to consider theories from disparate philosophers from different time periods and to then relate it to the problems of today. The wording of the question was also needlessly dense, aiming to simulate what might be asked of philosophy students. 

We don't want to put the exact question here, as other AI chatbots might glean it for future training. 

Given the general density and unreadability of the question, ChatGPT 4 performed remarkably. It was able to acknowledge the multidimensionality of the question, breaking it down point by point, similarly to how a tutor would. It started off by defining the different philosophies present to establish a baseline, then aimed to answer each element before finally combining all the information for one final answer. 

Compared to ChatGPT 3.5, ChatGPT 4 flew higher and further than its free counterpart. The informational processing really did mimic how a person would think the question through, showing how the increase in parameters helps AI chatbots to perform with greater cognitive ability. 

AI chatbots like ChatGPT are everything machines, so it can be hard to fully evaluate them without cross-referencing experts in coding, architecture or any other highly skilled field. 

Even so, it's obvious that ChatGPT 4 is smarter than the other AI chatbots. Its answers are more thoughtful, and it can synthesize complex bits of information to produce useful sentences, even if it takes a bit of time to process. It's also less prone to hallucinate. 

Is it worth the $20 per month subscription cost? That's situationally dependent. If you plan on only asking AI chatbots to write emails or give summaries of historical events, then the free versions will likely suffice. Seriously, as an email-writing machine, ChatGPT 4 performed well, but so did all the other AI chatbots. However, if you start finding answers to your multilayered questions to be unsatisfying, it might be worth dropping the $20 to give ChatGPT 4 a try. 

The value comes in instances where a general overview won't suffice and specifics will be necessary, like asking for the types of hardware needed for your specific setup or the furniture to consider in an awkwardly colored and shaped room. ChatGPT 4 really impresses when you need more specialized answers to specific questions (like college-level philosophy questions). 

At the very least, you'll have a better sense of what the capabilities of an uncapped AI chatbot are. Because when ChatGPT can run, it can go far, albeit not fast. 

Editor's note: CNET is using an AI engine to help create a handful of stories. Reviews of AI products like this, just like  CNET's other hands-on reviews , are written by our human team of in-house experts. For more, see  CNET's AI policy  and  how we test AI .