Emerging Technology
OpenAI Reveals New 'Tasks' Feature To Rival Siri & Alexa, As It Pushes US Gov To Invest In AI
By TechDogs Bureau

Updated on Wed, Jan 15, 2025
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Ogunlesi brought with him all the vast experience that came with being a Founding Partner, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), one of the world’s premier infrastructure investing platforms, and a Senior Managing Director at BlackRock.
While this was a big move for the company, it’s not the only reason OpenAI has been in the news over the last week.
A day ago, we reported that OpenAI revealed it was getting ready to dive into the world of AI-powered robotics with a series of new job posts made available.
Following this announcement, the company made yet another reveal, one that’s set to rival the likes of Amazon and Apple for their Alexa and Siri applications.
OpenAI’s ChatGPT can already scour the web and provide answers to questions, a move made possible thanks to the wide range of partnerships the company has engaged in over the past two years.
Now, the chatbot is in line to receive a new feature called Tasks.
Essentially, it will allow users to automate their work with scheduled tasks in ChatGPT. It will give ChatGPT “the ability to create tasks for itself to run later”.
Currently in its Beta testing phase, the feature is supported on ChatGPT Web, iOS, Android, and MacOS. As per the company’s plan, the scheduled tasks feature will come on the Windows app later in Q1. These tasks can be one-off or recurring and can be run regardless of whether the user is online or not.
Once the task is completed, users will be notified through push notifications or emails.
As per OpenAI, the feature works across different requirements, ranging from “Can you give me a briefing on AI news each afternoon?” to “Practice French with me daily” and “Remind me about my mom’s birthday”.
Learn more about the feature and how to set up a task.
Ahead of this, OpenAI made the news for a controversial piece of literature.
The company published a 15-page document addressed to the Government of the United States.
Titled “AI in America: OpenAI's Economic Blueprint”, the document outlines plans, provides advice, and revisits history in an attempt to influence US policymakers.
The end game is that they need to invest more money in artificial intelligence (AI), just as the country had done in the past with automobiles.
Summarized through a landing page on OpenAI’s website, OpenAI reminds us all that automobiles weren’t invented in the US, but rather in Europe, where road rules restricted the industry’s growth
However, the US “became the heart of the world’s auto industry, mass-producing affordable cars with the help of local, state and federal officials who saw the industry’s potential.” Furthermore, the country invested in better roads, opting for a national—rather than state-by-state—highway system, as the country “cleared the way to scale transport by car.”
In the same way, where some countries are sidelining AI and its economic potential, the US should once again become the flag bearer of AI’s growth globally.
This can be done by allowing the AI industry in the US to stick to values the US has always stood for, including “a free market promoting free and fair competition that drives innovation”, “freedom for developers and users to work with and direct our tools as they see fit”, and “preventing government use of AI tools to amass power and control their citizens, or to threaten or coerce other states.”
One of the main steps to success in this regard according to OpenAI is to apply ‘common-sense' rules as one nation, “rather than in a patchwork of state-by-state regulations.”
Furthermore, OpenAI notes that an estimated $175 billion is available to be invested in AI projects, which if the US doesn’t attract with policy changes and loosened regulations, will be diverted to China.
An excerpt from the document reads, “Today, while some countries sideline AI and its economic potential, the US government can pave the road for its AI industry to:
Continue the country’s global leadership in innovation while protecting national security.
Make sure we get it right on AI access and benefits from the start.
Maximize the economic opportunity of AI for communities across the country.”
OpenAI also mentioned that chips, data, energy, and talent are key to winning the AI race, one that the US must win.
“This country always succeeds when it bets on its ecosystem of builders and entrepreneurs,” the company further declared.
As such, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will be kicking off this work with a gathering in Washington, DC on January 30 to preview the state of AI advancement and how it can drive economic growth.
What do you think of ChatGPT’s new Task feature, and would you like to use it? What do you make of OpenAI’s AI proposal made to the US government?
Let us know in the comments below!
First published on Wed, Jan 15, 2025
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