The recent disruption of OpenAI's ChatGPT service, occurred on 8 November, has sparked waves of concern within the AI and natural language processing communities. With more than 100 million active weekly users, ChatGPT, a stalwart in the AI landscape, faced an unexpected blackout lasting over 90 minutes. However, the repercussions extended beyond ChatGPT, casting a shadow over OpenAI's entire ecosystem as its API services also succumbed to the disruption.

The ChatGPT and associated services disruption has garnered significant attention not only due to its duration and extent, but also because it marked the second outage within a 48 hours timeframe. A partial outage had occurred on Tuesday, 7 November, following the one on Thursday, 19 October and the previous one of Friday, 15 September. These partial outages, together with the last, major one, raise concerns not only about the service's stability and reliability, but also about the impact future outages may have on global business development.

OpenAI, a trailblazing company at the forefront of AI innovation, has been actively addressing this issue. They've implemented a fix and brought ChatGPT service back to its duties, assuring users of their commitment to resolving the problem swiftly and effectively. However, according to the last updates from OpenAI status website, it's been stated that the company is 'dealing with periodic outages due to an abnormal traffic pattern reflective of a DDoS attack' and is continuing to work in order to mitigate similar issues.

Presumed cyberattack

In a recent development, the hacktivist group, Anonymous Sudan, has claimed responsibility for the cyberattack on OpenAI's ChatGPT. The group outlined its motives in a post on their Telegram channel. The primary reasons cited for targeting ChatGPT include OpenAI's collaborations with Israel, particularly emphasising the CEO's expressed intention to increase investments in the country.

Anonymous Sudan underlined its focus on American companies as a driving force behind the attack. Additionally, the group claimed an alleged bias in ChatGPT, suggesting a preference for Israel over Palestine within the chatbot's interactions. These stated reasons shed light on the complex motivations behind the cyber assault, intertwining geopolitical concerns and perceived biases within the AI realms.

Wide-scale adoption of AI services

These unexpected outages brought many users to question the matter of sustainability of such backing infrastructure, since many companies are increasingly adopting ChatGPT's services and counting on its support to discharge their daily tasks. The trajectory of AI adoption within a wide range of industry sectors is poised for significant growth from 2022 to 2025. As of 2022, nearly half of the executives surveyed had the expectation that their respective companies would undergo wide-scale adoption of AI technologies. This anticipation underscores the recognition of AI as a transformative force within the world economy, with executives foreseeing the integration of AI across various facets of their operations.

Looking ahead to 2025, the sentiment among these industry leaders is even more optimistic. There is an expectation that the adoption rate of AI will not only continue to grow, but will surpass the earlier projections for wide-scale implementation. Executives envision a future where AI becomes not just a supplementary tool, but a critical component deeply embedded in the operational fabric of their companies.

This shift in expectations from wide-scale to critical implementation reflects a growing understanding of the profound impact that AI can have on the global economy workflow. AI is increasingly seen not merely as a trend or optional enhancement, but as an integral element that can drive efficiency, innovation, and strategic decision-making.

The factors driving this anticipated surge in AI adoption within the global work environment are manifold. The promise of enhanced data analysis, streamlined processes, and the ability to derive actionable insights from vast datasets positions AI as a catalyst for operational excellence. Additionally, as AI technologies continue to mature and demonstrate tangible benefits, companies are more inclined to invest in and fully embrace these advancements.

The increasing adoption of AI tools into various aspects of personal and professional lives is sparking a question about whether it will be possible to work and live without their backing in the near future, considering that once we got used to them, it will not be easy to replace automated processes and thus overcome longer inaccessibilities and misfunctions. Analysing this scenario requires consideration of the current role of AI, its impact on different sectors, and potential future developments, as the recent outage of OpenAI's services highlighted the need for stronger infrastructure and consistent service reliability.

Knowledge slaveries: Is Bottom-up AI a possible solution?

The constant use of AI services reveals our thoughts and emotions through interactions with AI platforms, resulting in a vast amount of data that can be used to extract patterns in our thinking. This trend has given rise to a new AI economy where these patterns are collected, codified, and monetised, raising concerns about privacy and cognition intrusions beyond what social media and tech platforms currently pose.

This development risks creating a state of 'knowledge slavery', where corporate or government AI monopolies control access to our knowledge. To counter this, it is essential to retain ownership over our thinking patterns, including those derived automatically through AI.

One of possible solution lies in the development of bottom-up AI, Diplo's Executive Director Dr Jovan Kurbalija claims. Bottom-up AI is both technically feasible and ethically desirable, and has the potential to address governance concerns raised by generative AI tools like ChatGPT. It gives control back to individuals and communities, ensuring privacy and data protection. It also fosters inclusivity, innovation, and democracy by mitigating the risks of power centralisation inherent in generative AI.

Contrary to the prevailing belief that powerful AI platforms can only be built using big data, leaked documents from Google suggest that open-source AI could outperform proprietary models like ChatGPT. Open-source platforms such as Vicuna, Alpaca, and LLama are already offering similar quality, while being more cost-effective, faster, more modular, and greener in terms of energy consumption.

The technology for bottom-up AI is advancing, but there is a need to ensure the quality of data. Currently, data labelling is mainly performed manually in low-cost English-speaking countries, risking labour law and data protection challenges. Diplo, a leading organisation, integrates data labelling into their daily operations, gradually building bottom-up AI by digitally annotating text during research and other tasks.

While the full adoption of bottom-up AI remains uncertain, it may coexist with top-down AI approaches. Some individuals and communities may be more inclined to experiment with and embrace bottom-up AI, while others stick to top-down AI due to inertia. However, questioning the prevailing AI paradigm and exploring alternatives is crucial to make informed decisions that benefit society as a whole and to prevent inconveniences from future outages of bigger AI service providers people are relying on.