OpenAI Unveils Canvas ChatGPT Interface To Write And Code

OpenAI, the maker of popular chatbot ChatGPT, announced the launch of canvas, a new interface for working with ChatGPT on writing and coding projects, more than the simple chat.

Canvas, the new way to interact with ChatGPT, opens in a separate window, allowing the users and ChatGPT to collaborate on a project. According to the firm, Canvas is a new approach and the first major update to ChatGPT’s visual interface since it was launched two years ago.

The Microsoft-backed artificial generative intelligence or AGI startup noted that Canvas is in early beta, and that it plans to rapidly improve its capabilities. It was built with GPT-4o and can be manually selected in the model picker while in beta.

OpenAI rolled out canvas to ChatGPT Plus and Team users globally starting Thursday, while Enterprise and Edu users will get access next week. The firm plans to make canvas available to all ChatGPT Free users when it’s out of beta.

OpenAI said it trained GPT-4o to collaborate as a creative partner. The model knows when to open a canvas, make targeted edits, and fully rewrite. It also understands broader context to provide precise feedback and suggestions.

Canvas opens automatically when ChatGPT detects a scenario in which it could be helpful, and the users can also include “use canvas” in prompt to open canvas and use it to work on an existing project.

The company pointed out that, although the chat interface is easy to use and works well for many tasks, and people use ChatGPT every day for help with writing and code, it’s limited when the user wants to work on projects that require editing and revisions. Canvas offers a new interface for this kind of work.

The firm said, “With canvas, ChatGPT can better understand the context of what you’re trying to accomplish. You can highlight specific sections to indicate exactly what you want ChatGPT to focus on…. You control the project in canvas. You can directly edit text or code. There’s a menu of shortcuts for you to ask ChatGPT to adjust writing length, debug your code, and quickly perform other useful actions. You can also restore previous versions of your work by using the back button in canvas.”

Further, canvas makes it easier to track and understand ChatGPT’s changes in coding, an iterative process, which otherwise can be hard to follow all the revisions to one’s code in chat. The company plans to continue improving transparency into these kinds of edits.

The new offering comes as the startup, which was founded in 2015, has reached a post-money valuation at $157 billion following its latest founding round where it raised $6.6 billion, aiming to accelerate its efforts in the AGI for humanity’s benefit. According to the firm, every week, over 250 million people around the world use ChatGPT to enhance their work, creativity, and learning.

OpenAI, which was founded as a non-profit to build safe and beneficial AGI for the benefit of humanity, is reportedly planning to restructure its core business to become a for-profit benefit business, aiming to attract more investors.

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