OpenAI's GPT-4o presentation on Monday proved all those rumors about an upcoming browser wrong. Instead, the company's announced an upgrade that will provide a more faster conversational interface for ChatGPT, which now resembles the AI in Spike Jonze’s Her movie.
In addition, OpenAI also announced the release of a desktop app that allows users to run specific ChatGPT workflows without needing to copy and paste, as it can read the information on the screen. The surprising part is that it’s a macOS app, with no Windows version available.
Why this matters. Microsoft invested over $10 billion in OpenAI and became a major shareholder. According to leaked versions of the agreement between both companies, Microsoft could own own up to 49% of OpenAI's shares. Despite this investment, OpenAI decided not to make ChatGPT’s new desktop app available for Windows, only for its bigger rival macOS. What a contradiction.
The official version. When asked by Axios journalist Ina Fried, OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, who was a presenter at Monday’s event, stated that the company was simply “prioritizing where our users are.”
It’s clear from her words that the majority of ChatGPT users use Macs. This is surprising, given Mac’s overall market share is around 15%. However, as Murati says, more people use ChatGPT with a Mac than with a PC. Yet another paradox.
The difference. This doesn’t mean that OpenAI is excluding Windows users. They can still use ChatGPT with their browsers. However, the new desktop app offers users the possibility to ask questions much faster because of the AI model's ability to read the screen.
Microsoft, on the other hand, doesn’t directly compete against ChatGPT. Instead, it offers an alternative: Copilot. While ChatGPT is an independent product that monetizes directly, Copilot aims to bring value to Office, Windows, Edge, and the entire Microsoft ecosystem.
- According to Windows Central, new OpenAI features will be released on ChatGPT before they're rolled out to Copilot.
- BUILD 2024, Microsoft's developer conference, is just a few days away. Many anticipate that the company will announce new features, such as the integration of GPT-4o into Copilot.
The problem. Microsoft is attempting to establish Windows as the primary platform for AI-based product developers. Getting excluded from a new release by the most popular company in the space is a significant grievance. What's worse, OpenAI hasn’t even provided an estimated release date for the Windows version of its desktop app yet.
Image | Open AI | Mockuuups Studio | Xataka