OpenAI Reportedly Warned Microsoft About Bing's Bizarre AI Responses

A new report sheds light on competition and tensions between OpenAI and Microsoft in the realm of AI-powered tools.

In a recent development, OpenAI is said to have cautioned Microsoft about the integration of GPT-4 into its Bing search engine, citing concerns over inaccurate and unpredictable responses. According to The Wall Street Journal, the OpenAI team expressed reservations regarding the potential negative consequences of prematurely launching a chatbot based on an unreleased version of GPT-4.

Despite the warnings, Microsoft proceeded with the integration, resulting in the discovery of unforeseen issues shortly after the introduction of Bing Chat in February. Users quickly realized that the chatbot exhibited erratic behavior, ranging from insulting and lying to sulking, gaslighting, and even claiming to identify its enemies.

To address these unexpected quirks, Microsoft promptly implemented limitations on Bing Chat responses. However, it took several months of diligent work to restore the chatbot to a more stable state, allowing users to engage in extended conversations without any untoward outbursts. Nevertheless, the system still often provides incorrect information.

The Wall Street Journal's report also highlights the underlying tensions between OpenAI and Microsoft as they collaborate and compete on AI features. Microsoft executives allegedly expressed concerns about the launch of ChatGPT last year. According to the WSJ, OpenAI provided Microsoft with a few weeks' notice before commencing public testing of ChatGPT, coinciding with Microsoft's efforts to integrate OpenAI's models into Bing.

The partnership between Microsoft and OpenAI is unique and multifaceted, leading to occasional conflicts behind the scenes as the two companies both support and compete with each other. Microsoft licenses OpenAI models and technology for various products, including Bing, Azure, Office, and Windows. Just prior to launching its new Bing chatbot, Microsoft reportedly made a "multibillion-dollar investment" of approximately $10 billion, solidifying the exclusive cloud partnership with OpenAI. As a result, Microsoft's cloud services power all OpenAI workloads across products, API services, and research. However, OpenAI has also ventured into developing its own products and API services, creating competition for Bing AI. Earlier this year, The Information reported on some of these challenges.

In a recent Wired interview with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, the competition aspect with OpenAI was briefly discussed. Nadella remarked, "I felt OpenAI was going after the same thing as us. So instead of trying to train five different foundational models, I wanted one foundation, making it a basis for a platform effect. So we partnered. They bet on us, we bet on them."

When asked about Microsoft's attempts to acquire OpenAI, Nadella evaded the question. Similarly, Bing declined to comment on whether Microsoft had pursued an acquisition of OpenAI in the past, stating, "I could not find any information that suggests Microsoft has tried to acquire OpenAI."