OpenAI's ChatGPT seems ubiquitous, but open source versions of instruction-tuned text generators are gaining the upper hand. In just six months, at least 15 serious alternatives have emerged, all of which have at least one important advantage over ChatGPT: they are a lot more transparent. Insight into training data and algorithms is key for responsible use of generative AI, a team of linguists and language technology researchers at Radboud University claim.
The researchers have mapped this rapidly evolving landscape in a paper and a live-updated website. This shows there are many working alternative "open source" text generators, but also that openness comes in degrees and that many models inherit legal restrictions. They sound a note of cautious optimism.
Lead researcher Andreas Liesenfeld says, "It's good to see so many open alternatives emerging. ChatGPT is so popular that it is easy to forget that we don't know anything about the training data or other tricks being played behind the scenes. This is a liability for anyone who wants to better understand such models or build applications on them. Open alternatives enable critical and fundamental research."
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