The Top AI Chatbots in 2023: Capabilities, Use Cases, and Limitations

10 min readAug 23, 2023

Introduction

The explosion of chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Bing, and Google’s Bard represents a new frontier in conversational Artificial Intelligence (AI).

These top AI chatbots tools showcase impressive natural language processing capabilities and the potential to revolutionize search, information access, and digital assistance.

However, current limitations around bias, accuracy, and reasoning skills underscore the need for responsible development.

Evaluating the tradeoffs between today’s leading chatbots is crucial for determining optimal use cases while advancing AI safety.

What are the top AI chatbots in 2023?

Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have exploded in popularity in 2023, with major tech companies releasing new conversational AI tools. Here are some of the top AI chatbots to watch this year:

ChatGPT

ChatGPT, launched by OpenAI in late 2022, is one of the most advanced AI chatbots available today. It uses a large language model trained on vast amounts of text data to generate human-like conversations on a wide range of topics. Key features of ChatGPT include:

Natural language processing capabilities that allow for complex conversations
Ability to answer follow-up questions and admit mistakes
Customizable responses based on provided instructions and examples
Knowledge of current events up to 2021 when it was trained

ChatGPT has impressed many with its articulate responses, creativity, and ability to explain concepts. However, it does have some key limitations:

Potential for bias and misinformation since it is trained on internet text data
Lack of understanding of events after 2021
Inability to actually search the web or access external data

Overall, ChatGPT marks a major milestone in conversational AI due to its human-like interaction abilities.

Claude

Claude is an AI assistant created by Anthropic, a startup founded by former OpenAI researchers. It was designed to be helpful, harmless, and honest. Key features include:

Ability to maintain consistent conversations and personalities over time
Transparency about its limitations and when it does not know something
Focus on being helpful and inoffensive in its responses
Web access allows it to look up recent information when needed

Claude aims to address issues like bias and factual mistakes that may arise with large language models like ChatGPT.

Its open-ended conversational ability combined with web access and transparency make Claude a promising contender in the AI chatbot space.

Perplexity

Perplexity is another new AI chatbot launched in early 2023 by AI startup Anthropic. Like Claude, it was designed by former OpenAI researchers to be helpful, harmless, and honest. Perplexity builds on Claude by incorporating even more advanced safety techniques, including:

Robust conversational abilities that allow consistent, coherent dialogues
Proactive safety measures to avoid generating or reinforcing harmful stereotypes
Ability to gracefully handle out-of-distribution questions it cannot safely answer
Providing detailed explanations when it cannot generate an appropriate response

As a research tool focused on AI safety, Perplexity aims to push the boundaries of safe and beneficial conversational AI systems.

Google Bard

In early February 2023, Google unveiled its own AI chatbot called **Bard** to compete with ChatGPT and other models. Bard is powered by LaMDA, Google’s large language model for dialog applications. Key features expected for Bard include:

Conversational abilities and natural language processing
Integration with Google’s search engine and knowledge graph
Ability to admit mistakes and reject inappropriate requests
Focus on providing accurate, up-to-date information

Google plans to open Bard up to trusted external testers first before making it more widely available. However, the initial demo of Bard provided an erroneous answer, highlighting the challenges Google faces in launching its AI chatbot responsibly.

Microsoft Bing Chat

Microsoft has integrated an AI chatbot known as “Bing Chat” into its Bing search engine. Powered by a custom model developed by Microsoft, key capabilities include:

Conversational responses to searches, questions, and prompts
Summarizing long web pages
Simplifying complex topics by breaking them down into main points
Admitting knowledge gaps and suggesting high quality online resources

As with other AI chatbots, bias and factual inaccuracies remain a concern. But by integrating its model directly into search, Microsoft aims to provide users helpful AI alongside access to the broader web.

Other Key Players

Some other AI chatbots to watch include:

You.com -AI search chatbot with a visual interface
Jasper — Open-source conversational AI assistant
Copy.ai — AI content writing assistant bot
Write Sonic — Tool for generating marketing copy using AI
Spark Writer — AI writing assistant bot focused on long-form content

The AI chatbot field is rapidly evolving with new entrants and capabilities. But responsible design focused on safety remains crucial as these technologies grow more powerful.

Evaluating each model’s strengths and limitations will allow consumers to determine the optimal use cases and conversations for leveraging AI chatbots effectively in 2023 and beyond.

How does ChatGPT compare to other AI chatbots in 2023?

ChatGPT exploded in popularity upon its release by OpenAI in late 2022. But how does it compare to other top AI chatbots like Claude, Perplexity, and Google’s Bard in 2023? Here is a breakdown of ChatGPT’s key strengths and limitations versus other conversational AI tools:

ChatGPT’s Strengths

§ Human-like conversational ability — ChatGPT impresses many with its natural language processing, ability to follow conversation flows, and provide articulate, nuanced responses on a wide range of topics.

§ Creative Potential — Within certain parameters, ChatGPT can generate creative content like poems, jokes, stories, and song lyrics based on given prompts and instructions.

§ Knowledge of events up to 2021 — As ChatGPT was trained up until 2021, it has an extensive knowledge base of events and information before that year.

§ Explaining concepts — Given its training on vast amounts of text data, ChatGPT can break down complex ideas and summarize information into key points.

§ Customizable responses — Users can fine-tune ChatGPT’s responses by providing examples, context, and guidelines.

ChatGPT’s Weaknesses

Potential for bias — Since it was trained on unfiltered internet text, ChatGPT may generate biased, unethical, or factually incorrect responses.

§ Lack of understanding of recent events — With training only up to 2021, ChatGPT has major knowledge gaps about current events and information after that year.

§ No web access — Unlike some other AI chatbots, ChatGPT cannot look up information online or access external data sources.

§ Inconsistent persona — ChatGPT does not maintain one consistent identity or store conversation history, leading to fragmented chats.

§ Limited reasoning skills — While articulate, ChatGPT has difficulty with complex reasoning, numerical questions, and logical thinking.

Comparison to Other Models

Claude — Has a more consistent personality, web access, and transparency about its limitations compared to ChatGPT. But has less broad knowledge and conversational ability.
Perplexity — Focuses even more heavily on safety and responsible conversational AI than Claude. But is more limited in scope during initial research phases.
Google Bard — Expected to integrate web search and knowledge graph to provide accurate, updated info. But may lack the conversational eloquence of ChatGPT.
Microsoft Bing — Integration directly into search engine aims to combine conversational AI with the broader web. But bias and accuracy issues remain a concern.

In summary, ChatGPT pioneered impressively human-like conversational AI, but may not be ideal for certain use cases compared to AI chatbots focused more on safety, web integration, and transparent limitations.

Evaluating these differences allows consumers to determine the best applications for ChatGPT versus other emerging models in 2023 and beyond.

What can you do with AI chatbots like Claude, Perplexity, and Anthropic in 2023?

AI chatbots like Claude and Perplexity from startup Anthropic are demonstrating expanded capabilities for conversational AI tools in 2023. Here are some key use cases these models unlock:

1. Open-Ended Conversations

Have natural chats on a wide range of topics like science, philosophy, culture, and more
Maintain consistent, coherent conversations with personality and context tracking
Discuss hypothetical scenarios, current events, abstract ideas, and make predictions

2. Everyday Assistance

Ask for advice on common daily tasks and questions
Get personalized recommendations for media, restaurants, travel, and products
Have an AI companion for chats whenever you want one

3. Factual Knowledge

“Claude can access the web” to look up recent facts, figures, definitions and more
Ask questions across fields like math, history, geology and get accurate, in-depth explanations
Get summaries of longer articles or complex topics broken down into main points

4. Learning Aid

Have Claude explain course concepts you are struggling with
Use as a tutor for test prep or to deepen knowledge on academic subjects
Aid in foreign language learning through conversational practice

5. Writing & Content Creation

Get AI-generated drafts of articles, stories, posts on given topics
Have Claude review a drafted piece for gaps, suggest improvements
Brainstorm ideas and outlines for creative writing projects

6. Job & Interview Practice

Practice answering common interview questions and get feedback
Refine resumes and cover letters optimized for specific roles
Research details about industries and companies to prepare

The goal with Claude and Perplexity is to move beyond pure entertainment towards AI assistants that can enhance knowledge, productivity, and decision making for users.

Their evolving capabilities aim to unlock many promising real-world applications of conversational AI in 2023 and beyond.

What are the key differences between ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI chatbots?

ChatGPT and Claude represent two of the leading conversational AI chatbots available today, but there are some key differences in their approaches:

a) Training Data

- ChatGPT was trained on a vast dataset of unfiltered internet text sources. This allows broad knowledge, but risks biased and inaccurate responses.

- Claude was trained on a filtered dataset emphasizing factual accuracy over raw scale. This curtails bias, but may limit conversational breadth.

b) Knowledge Recency

- ChatGPT is limited to knowledge only up until 2021 when it was trained. “Claude can access the web” to look up recent information.

- This allows Claude to discuss up-to-date current events, new research, and information ChatGPT lacks.

c) Conversational Consistency

- ChatGPT treats each conversation independently with no persistent identity or memory.

- Claude maintains personality, dialogue history, and context to have coherent, consistent chats.

d) Transparency

- ChatGPT will attempt to generate plausible-sounding responses even when incorrect.

- Claude is designed to be upfront when it does not actually know something or could be mistaken.

e) Limitations

- ChatGPT has broad capabilities but lacks Depth. Its knowledge beyond 2021 is limited.

- Claude has less breadth of knowledge, but more precision with web access. It is limited in research phases.

f) Development Philosophy

- ChatGPT prioritizes impressively human-like conversational abilities.

- Claude prioritizes safety, accuracy, and beneficial real-world usage focused on human needs.

In summary, ChatGPT pioneered advanced conversational AI, while Claude aims to address key limitations through responsible design.

Comparing their differing strengths helps determine optimal use cases where each chatbot may excel in 2023.

What are the limitations of current AI chatbots like Google Bard and ChatGPT?

As conversational AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s Bard enter the mainstream, it is important to understand their current limitations:

i. Potential for bias and misinformation

- Since models are trained on internet data, they inherit human biases and lack filters for accuracy.

ii. Inability to fact check responses

- Most chatbots like ChatGPT cannot look up external information to verify facts.

iii. Limited knowledge of current events

- Training data cuts off in 2021 for ChatGPT, limiting awareness of recent information.

iv. Difficulty with complex reasoning

- While articulating, chatbots struggle with logical reasoning, numerical questions, and critical thinking.

v. No consistency in personalities or memory

- Each conversation is treated independently, with no persistent identity maintained.

vi. Over-confidence and incorrect answers

- Models like Bard try appearing knowledgeable even when wrong or uncertain.

vii. Limited capabilities beyond conversations

- Most chatbots lack abilities beyond text, like image generation or analyzing data.

viii. Narrow skillsets

- Current chatbots are generalized, lacking specialized expertise in domains like law or medicine.

ix. Vulnerabilities to misuse

- The potential generation of harmful, unethical, dangerous content remains a concern.

Regulation, ethical frameworks, and technical mitigations focused on transparency, credibility, and responsible design are important to address these limitations as AI chatbots grow more sophisticated and ubiquitous.

Advancing natural language processing alongside safety remains crucial.

Key Outputs

ChatGPT impressed many with its human-like conversational abilities, but has limitations in bias, knowledge breadth, and reasoning skills.
Alternatives like Claude and Perplexity focus more on safety, web integration, transparency, and consistent identity in conversations.
Google Bard aims to leverage web search data for more accurate, updated responses relative to ChatGPT’s knowledge cutoff in late 2021.
Responsible AI design focused on transparency, consistency, and factual credibility is crucial as chatbots grow more capable and prominent.
Evaluating differences allows determining optimal applications and conversations where specific AI chatbots excel based on their unique strengths and weaknesses.

Conclusion

AI chatbots achieved impressive advances in natural language processing in 2022, led by ChatGPT.
However, key limitations remain around bias, accuracy, reasoning ability, and conversation consistency.
New models in 2023 like Claude, Perplexity, and Google Bard are demonstrating approaches to address these weaknesses through design choices and web integration.
Carefully evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of each chatbot allows matching the optimal tool to specific use cases and needs.
Prioritizing safety, ethics and responsible development remains crucial as conversational AI moves into the mainstream.

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