The world-renowned founder of ChatGPT, OpenAI, has announced an interesting update to its popular chatbot, allowing it to now memorize context from previous interactions with users. This latest feature, known as ‘custom instructions,’ empowers ChatGPT to remember individual user preferences and deliver more personalized responses during conversations.
Initially, the ‘custom instructions’ feature will be exclusively available to Plus users, offering them an advanced level of interaction with the chatbot. OpenAI plans to gradually extend access to this feature to all other users within the upcoming weeks. To cater to a wider audience, users can access ‘custom instructions’ on both the website and the iOS app.
Addressing User Concerns
OpenAI responded to valuable user feedback, particularly focusing on complaints about the need to start every conversation with ChatGPT from scratch. The company recognized the importance of “steerability” in enabling their AI models to adapt better to diverse contexts and meet the unique needs of each individual. The ‘custom instructions’ update comes as a direct response to these user insights.
“Through our conversations with users across 22 countries, we’ve deepened our understanding of the essential role steerability plays in enabling our models to effectively reflect the diverse contexts and unique needs of each person.”
OpenAI on adding ‘customs instructions’ to ChatGPT
With the new memory feature, ChatGPT will now take into account specific messages and inputs provided by users during conversations.This information will then be used to inform and enrich subsequent interactions. For example, a data expert can indicate their preferred coding language, and ChatGPT will remember and revert to that specific language for future coding-related queries.
Moreover, the ‘custom instructions’ update extends its capabilities to ChatGPT’s plugins as well. If a user engages with a particular restaurant plugin, ChatGPT will consider the user’s location when recommending suitable restaurants for reservations.
New feature undergoing beta testing
The ‘custom instructions’ feature is currently undergoing beta testing, which means occasional wrong responses may occur. OpenAI has taken precautions to address this by implementing safety measures during the testing phase.
OpenAI has developed a Moderation API that ensures ChatGPT does not retain or save any information that violates the company’s content policy. In addition, the chatbot’s programming makes it to refuse generating answers for instructions that breach policy guidelines.
