How Developers Can Leverage OpenAI's ChatGPT API

The massive popularity of the ChatGPT API makes generative AI one of the most impactful technology innovations over the last few years. It provides the capability to both understand and generate language-based content far outstripping the current customer service bots used throughout the business world. Intriguing use cases abound in a variety of industries, including source code generation, image-generated prompts, and conversational AI, ultimately helping humans become more productive at their jobs.

Developers hoping to leverage this state-of-the-art functionality in their own projects received good news when OpenAI API released an API for ChatGPT. This enables companies to build paid apps and interactive websites effectively using OpenAI’s models and chatbot technology as a service. Needless to say, since its early March release, a variety of businesses and developers released a host of apps using the new API.

So let’s take a deeper dive into the new ChatGPT API so you understand how to integrate it into your next project whether it's text generation, building generative AI models, or something else. We also touch upon OpenAI’s related Whisper API which provides AI functionality around speech recognition. Implementing both keeps your company on the leading edge of the continued impact of AI on the global economy and improves customer support and the creation of content.

Details on Using the ChatGPT API in Your Own Projects

The ChatGPT API is based on OpenAI’s GPT-3.5-Turbo model. The pricing to access the service comes in at $0.002 per 1000 tokens, which OpenAI claims is 10x more inexpensive compared to accessing the previous GPT-3.5 model. A token represents a sequence of unstructured text used as input into the model. OpenAI also created ChatML, a markup language containing both the input text and associated metadata, for developers to use when accessing the API.

Note, if your project expects to enjoy high usage, OpenAI makes dedicated instances of the API available on their Azure cloud service. They recommend companies using more than 450 million tokens per day consider this approach, as it becomes more cost-effective with higher volumes in this wide range. For more detailed information on using the ChatGPT API keys, check out OpenAI’s guide.

Additionally, the ChatGPT API currently provides no access to the new GPT-4 large language model. In fact, it’s still in the preview stage. More information on receiving preview access is at the following link.

The Whisper API for Speech-to-Text Applications

A machine learning model using ChatGPT's training data sets in combination with OpenAI’s Whisper API offers the opportunity to craft apps using speech recognition for transcription functionality or even building a voice-activated assistant, like Siri or Alexa. This ChatGPT API accesses the large-v2 model at a price of $0.006 per minute. Keep Whisper and its capabilities in mind during your project ideation process. Learn more about the Whisper API with this OpenAI guide.

Interesting Applications Already Using the ChatGPT API  

After the release of the ChatGPT API, many applications quickly added enhanced conversational chatbot features leveraging the API. Let’s take a look at a few of the most popular examples to help inspire some ideas for a killer new project using the latest in generative AI.

• Snapchat: The popular messaging service introduced a new My AI feature on its Snapchat+ premium option powered by the ChatGPT API. My AI functions as a conversational chatbot providing users with recommendations or advice based on the questions asked of it. It’s even able to write a quick poem or song lyric.
• Quizlet: An online educational service with over 60 million users, Quizlet partnered with OpenAI over the last three years, taking advantage of the company’s older GPT models. The company recently built Q-Chat, an adaptive AI tutor using the new API. Expect this type of use-case to revolutionize remote learning.
• Instacart: The food delivery service is developing a future feature – Ask Instacart – using ChatGPT in concert with its own AI and partner data from retail stores. It provides actionable recipe and item suggestions when a user asks questions like “How do I make a healthy breakfast casserole?” Expect it to roll out later in 2023.
• Shopify: The online retailer recently introduced Shop, a shopping assistant powered by the ChatGPT API. The assistant operates in tandem with search queries on the site, making suggestions leveraging the service’s massive product data which contains millions of items. This personalized advice also takes into account each user’s own purchase history.
• Speak: An app used to learn new languages, Speak uses both the ChatGPT and Whisper APIs providing AI-powered voice recognition and speaking capabilities. This combination offers users a conversational approach to language learning, providing real-time feedback as if being taught by a human instructor.

These examples reveal the potential impact of generative AI in education, social media, and online retail. The ChatGPT API definitely makes it easier for developers to add this functionality to their own apps. Also, pay attention to any ChatGPT alternatives making an impact in this field.

If you need a partner to help transform an intriguing idea into a compelling app, website, or platform, contact the team at NineTwoThree. As a digital venture studio with experience in ChatGPT software development, we boast the technical know-how and business expertise to help your startup thrive. Connect with us soon!