Plenty of mobile apps are popping up, claiming to be as good as, if not better, than ChatGPT. But you shouldn’t download them, and here’s why.
The arrival of ChatGPT is one of the most disruptive events in the tech world in recent times. One moment, everyone is discussing the potentials of Web 3.0 and the metaverse. The next moment, we are all in awe of the powers of ChatGPT.
Unfortunately, like with most new technology, a lot of fakes tend to pop up. Banking on the popularity of ChatGPT, many app developers are pushing fake ChatGPT apps on app stores. Here’s why you shouldn’t download any ChatGPT mobile app right now.
Fake ChatGPT Apps Are Flooding App Stores
Both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store have recently seen a significant surge in AI chatbot apps, most of which only appeared shortly after the launch of ChatGPT in the last quarter of 2022. Normally, this wouldn’t be a problem. Who doesn’t love an AI chatbot?
Unfortunately, a vast majority of these apps are misleading users by posing as official ChatGPT mobile apps. Some go as far as fleecing unsuspecting users by offering a premium version that claims to outdo what ChatGPT can do.
As of January 2023, OpenAI does not have a premium ChatGPT service open to the public. Apps that claim to offer such are fraudulent.
We tried dozens of the so-called ChatGPT apps on the Play Store and App Store. For those that worked, none of them could offer anything significantly different from what the browser-based version of ChatGPT offers. Rather, a common theme was numerous ads. A bulk of them couldn’t even get past the authentication screen.
The reason for this is simple—OpenAI does not have an official ChatGPT mobile app. Any app that poses as one is fake.
Are There Legit ChatGPT Apps From Third-Party Developers?
While OpenAI doesn’t have an official ChatGPT app, it would still be technically possible for third-party developers to create apps using the same technology that runs ChatGPT.
There are many legitimate mobile apps that use OpenAI’s GPT-3 API, which makes it possible to answer questions and perform tasks similar to what ChatGPT would do.
However, these apps differ from ChatGPT and are not as powerful or nearly as efficient as ChatGPT. While there’s a GPT-3 API, OpenAI doesn’t have an official API for ChatGPT.
A ChatGPT API (Application Programming Interface) would be a way for app developers to build apps that talk directly to ChatGPT and thus achieve similar results in their applications. Since there’s no such API for now, there’s really no “ethical” way for developers to build ChatGPT-powered mobile apps.
Beware of Fake ChatGPT Apps
As a rule of thumb, avoid any app that uses the OpenAI logo, claims to be ChatGPT, or offers premium access.
It’s unclear whether OpenAI will consider building a mobile app for ChatGPT in the future. Until they choose to do so, don’t fall victim to malicious actors peddling fake ChatGPT apps.
The best way to access ChatGPT right now is through your browser on both PC and mobile.