The Lawyer Who Blew a Case Using ChatGPT Is an Example of the Wrong Way to Use AI–Here’s How to Use AI Effectively for Your Business in 2023

The New York Times recently reported on a case that is one of the most significant examples yet of how A.I. is changing the field of law and the way lawyers operate.

The case concerned a flier who was injured on an airline and wanted to sue. The airline, the defendant, wanted to dismiss the lawsuit. The prosecution challenged the airline’s request. That challenge came in the form of a written report to the judge that cited and quoted multiple similar, relevant cases that were much like the case in question.

The only problem was that the cited and quoted cases were simply not real. ChatGPT made them up.

How Did This Happen?

What happened was that a lawyer for the prosecution decided to take a shortcut here.

Instead of buckling down and finding cases for himself, the lawyer pretty much told ChatGPT to fetch some for him.

The problem with this is that ChatGPT, at bottom, does not know the difference between “real” and “unreal.” This is why so much has been written about “A.I. hallucination”, which the New York Times has also covered.

So, if you ask it to cite cases to make a legal argument, it may very well just generate fictional cases that could be used to support the argument. These cases’ unreality is not something that the chatbot can truly understand – which can lead to a disaster for the lawyer in question.

Unfortunately, the lawyer did not understand this. He even asked ChatGPT whether the cases were real, and to cite them. ChatGPT simply generated fictional citations to support the fictional quotations.

So this brings us to the catch-22 of using A.I. to monitor A.I. At the end of the day, no matter how great the A.I. becomes, you are always going to want a human fact-checker and editor to ensure that misinformation is not being produced (especially if it’s pertaining to a serious legal matter).

The reason for this is not that A.I. is malicious, but because it simply does not know any better. All it really knows is what words are related to each other, and in what combinations words ought to go in. Deeper questions such as “what is real” cannot even be understood by the A.I., at least not to the extent that humans can grasp the concept.

Fact-Checking Generative A.I. Is Essential in A.I. Collaboration

ChatGPT is also very hit or miss when it comes to citing sources. It is especially problematic in this area because it will only offer text without any hyperlinks that can lead you to the cited sources.

As a result, you are going to need a human who can look up the cited information.

In the lawyer’s case, unfortunately the fact checkers were the defendants in the case, who were able to point out to the judge that the prosecution was using bogus information.

Here’s How Your Business Can Effectively Use ChatGPT

Some may reject the notion that the lawyer should have used A.I. at all, but this is going to be an unrealistic request as A.I. only becomes more sophisticated.

Fact-checking is just the beginning, because you are going to need a dedicated “chatbot editor” who will not only corroborate any claims made in the copy, but rewrite and revise the copy so that it is SEO-ready, readable, and engaging.

Want to Use AI for Your Business? Let’s GO.

With ChatGPT, artificial intelligence finally had its “iPhone moment”.

Like smartphones, which were once a niche technology, AI is slowly becoming universally recognized as one of the most important and life-changing technologies of our era.

There are many business owners out there wondering how they can take advantage of AI. What they may not know is that plenty of businesses, including their competitors, are already using AI.

Right now, the technology is available to business owners. They just need to know where to look.

Guardian Owl Digital has a proven track record of working with businesses through its AI and machine learning initiative, GO AI.

GO AI, through a partnership with Findability Sciences, offers clients the services of AI platforms like IBM Watson that offer you automated marketing solutions.

This includes TouchUp, which will tell you how your customers will receive your creative marketing materials.

Predict+ offers up to 99% accurate predictions for important data such as customer churn rates or the prices of materials you order for your operations.

Persona modeling offers you key cognitive insights into your customer base, enabling you to improve your marketing and customer outreach efforts based on what your customers care about.

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From finance to manufacturing to healthcare and beyond, any and every industry, and businesses of all sizes, can benefit from our affordable AI solutions.

So, what are you waiting for? GO AI today to grow your business.