‘Storming the Stockades’ - GROK 3

“…it may well be doubted whether human ingenuity can construct an enigma…,which human ingenuity may not, by proper application, resolve.” -Edgar Allen Poe

The recent emergence of GROK 3 is symbolic of a storming of the stockades of extant Gen AI. While Deep Seek, the Chinese AI emerged out of the convulsions of deprivation, GROK 3 hits the AI ‘battle space’ as a consequence of an unexpected separation, enormous finance and privilege. An overview of GROK 3, also meanders through the pages of a classic book, ‘The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’, a probable inspiration for its mentor, Elon Musk.

Open AI, the company that created Chat GPT, was co-founded by Elon Musk and Sam Altman in 2015. They parted ways in 2018, when Musk objected to the way Chat GPT was going, based on closed source and for profit. There were also objections to Chat GPT’s left-leaning, which some opined, could be dangerous. Musk’s vision for his AI was that,‘…it would understand and interact with humans, naturally’. It would also be maximum truth-seeking, and free in speech.

GROK 3, backed by the Colossus Data Centre complex in Tennessee, was worked reportedly out of a 200,000 Nvidia GPU cluster, as opposed to the assessed 25,000 GPUs for Chat GPT. There are several technical parameters, for either, but the choice of architecture is conceptually different. Based on some assessed scores, the MMLU (Massive Multi-language Understanding) Benchmark score for GROK 3 is 88.4 %, as opposed to Chat GPT4 at 86.5 %. This makes it more endearing and personable.

A fundamental difference in approach, however, is that GROK 3, has been enabled with an architecture, which can bridge in real time with, X (erstwhile Twitter), as well as the Internet. This imparts it tremendous power to respond to current and emerging issues, and sense extant opinions. It has a preferential feed from its own platform and the Net. AI systems such as GPT are linked in time and space to when they were trained and put out in the market. Their subsequent relevancy is contingent on updates and user feedback. In a sense, therefore, the other Gen AI cannot compete with GROK 3, since it is inherently in architecture linked in real-time, to the ‘real world’. Albeit, the electronic world.

And what of its character? Being an AI, one can use the expression character and nature. It is reportedly humorous, sassy, with a rebellious streak. Its answers are direct and unguarded, in contrast with other AI’s which are struggling to be politically correct, and inoffensive. It is willing to answer almost any question, no matter how provocative, when other AIs, demur. Its default mode is called Fun Mode, and the more advanced are Think Mode and Big Brain. This is indicative of the flexibility and surge capability of its unique architecture. It can handle several queries simultaneously. Departing from Open AI, gave the GROK series, the ability to address the infirmities of the Chat GPT family.

The Hitchhikers Guide seems to have an enormous influence on all the enterprises of Elon Musk. From the Neuralink embedded chip in a human brain, to the most powerful rocket system Starship. The name Grok, though unconfirmed, apparently originates from a 1961 Sci-Fi, ‘Strangers in a Strange Land’. In the movie, it meant, ‘to understand something profoundly and intuitively’. This apart, I cannot but entertain the tantalising thought, of the historical figure Grok. Born in 1880 Grok (Charles Wittach), had the most painful and irritating blunders with the piano and violin, in early life. He went on to be a Master Clown. His persona echoes with that of Vogel, in The Hitchhikers Guide, who used his awful poetry to torture captives. A streak of absurd drama, that may have been a part of the conceptual mix for GROK 3 ?

More from the Hitchhikers Guide seems inspirational. There exists a supercomputer, (a quirky galactic repository of knowledge), called Deep Thought, whose purpose is to answer the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything. A space ship The Heart of Gold, is powered by an infinite improbability drive. The book concludes with the travellers heading to a. restaurant at the end of the universe, for a bite.

GROK 3, will undoubtedly be alluring and seductive. It may positively lift the Trough of Disappointment Gen AI is presently experiencing. Is it the AI one can now finally depend on? That does not carry a simple answer. There are enough Gen AIs to realise each has its own utility and compelling infirmities. GROK 3, has clearly demonstrated that it is possible to create AI with a definite character and flavour. So is the case for the others in the market, no matter how subtle or occluded. So there is a play in the words of response, a certain inventiveness in the AI. Whether by design, or due to structural infirmity, (which is endemic), in complex and nuanced issues you will get a curation of the facts. You always run the risk of getting a selective version of responses, most definitely in such unforgiving areas, such as The Truth.

GPT4 is reportedly hyper-dependent on feedback, does not fine-tune and can be factually incorrect. It can display a lack of grounded reasoning, and respond in a biased manner. GROK 3 is reported to have challenges in consistency, in being contextually accurate and relevant, especially in complex and ambiguous domains. The game remains to capitalise on the ability to seduce, and of course outreach human capabilities, in speed, scale and range, consistently. Our pronounced race into self-indulgence, presents a unique opportunity for Gen AI to gain centrality in time.

The contours of AI futures seem to be emerging. While there is a full family of AI, that is positioning itself in supporting roles very efficiently, Gen AI seeks a different destiny. It seeks to replace human functionality and ultimately presence. In the present phase it aspires to prove its validity and utility to the realm of human functionality. There will be several intermediate phases. How it will influence the workspace is still conjectural.

In conclusion, when related to our interactive media dominated genre. If left unchecked the ocean of screens that surround us will prioritise the audio-visual experience, speed and topical relevance, over application of mind and reasoning. The resultant cognitive world may be wildly iniquitous, shrill and fragile.

Lt General Sanjiv Langer PVSM,AVSM is an Army veteran. The views expressed here are the writer’s own.