In this post, discover:
- What AutoGPT is
- How to use it
- Why it will change civilization as we know it.
This A.I. will Change Everything.
Over the last 10 years, I have written about Artificial Intelligence now and again. However, this time is different, as things have changed dramatically. While you may use ChatGPT for your quarterly report, automatic AI models like AutoGPT and BabyAGI have already ushered in the era of complete automatization.
Unlike ChatGPT, which drafts and researches project plans, AutoGPT manages entire projects, writes and fixes code, and consults ChatGPT when needed. The user only needs to approve commands while AutoGPT does all the work – from programming to writing books and managing social media. The user only needs to watch and approve commands, while AutoGPT is literally doing all the work – from programming to writing books and managing social media.
To put it like this: You already know what ChatGPT does. AutoGPT does what you do when you are using ChatGPT. Everyone who has tried it seems super psyched, and the Reddit community is full of excited people who apparently haven’t slept in weeks.
Chances are that the latest developments in A.I. are as significant as the industrial revolution. Learn now how AutoGPT works and how you can use it to create your personal robots army.
Getting Started with AutoGPT
AutoGPT is still experimental, buggy, and requires a paid OpenAI account for smooth operation. To get it up and running will take some time and effort. But if you go through the trouble, you will get a glimpse of what the future of artificial intelligence is like. Because what is a rather nerdy GitHub-toy today, will eventually become an easy-to-use app with a user-friendly interface.
Ready to set up AutoGPT on your system?
You will need to prepare the following:
- Install Git
- install Python (Important: choose the “Add to PATH”-option during setup)
- Prepare your API-Keys for OpenAI and Pinecone (ElevenLabs if you want it to speak)
- Install Docker, because it will be useful sooner or later
- More API connections (e.g. to Twitter, Google) can be useful
After you have prepared everything, follow this step-by-step guide to install and start AutoGPT.
Important note: The step-by-step guide mentioned above will install the Master branch of AutoGPT, although at the moment I highly recommend using the stable release instead. You can download the stable release here. Simply unpack the .zip-file, rename the directory to “Auto-GPT” and place it into your main directory. Then skip step 1 of the guide (“Clone the repository”).
AutoGPT is operated through old-fashioned console commands. On Windows, you will need to open the command prompt by typing “cmd” into the search bar. Then navigate to the AutoGPT-folder with the command “cd Auto-GPT”. The guide listed above suggests starting AutoGPT with the command “python scripts/main.py”. If this command returns an error, try this instead:
python -m AutoGPT
Once you have started AutoGPT, it will run some tests. If it encounters any problems, it will try to solve them all by itself. Yes, this software can troubleshoot itself.
Most likely you will run into errors sooner or later. AutoGPT still has a rather fragile memory and sometimes seems to forget what it was working on halfway through a project. Here I want to point out this winning thread by Reddit-user u/stunspot, who found a simple, yet efficient way of curing AutoGPT from its ADHD and keeping it focused by providing a specs.txt file (spoiler: ChatGPT will do most of the work for you).
Exploring AutoGPT’s Potential
Currently, real-life use cases for AutoGPT are limited due to API request costs. So far, I have mostly been playing around to see what is possible – and well, basically, everything…
First, I linked AutoGPT to a Twitter account and made it say, “Hello World”. Then I had it program a little adventure game with pixel graphics and write a novel about cats in space. Most of these projects failed at some point or another, because AutoGPT got stuck in a loop and then lost the progress it has already made. I think this is mostly due to file management issues that I still need to resolve. But just to see how quickly and diligently AutoGPT works on whatever task you give it is already mind-blowing. For example, I have seen it develop the gameplay mechanics, controls, a storyline, characters, and a soundtrack for the pixel game right in front of my eyes.
Of course, AutoGPT sometimes does weird things too. Halfway through crafting it’s novel about space cats, it decided that it would be best to tweet about space news instead:
AutoGPT is not a finished product yet. But rest assured, once everything runs smoothly, the possibilities will be unlimited.
What do WE do?
The rapid advancement of AI raises some serious questions. AI has reached a point where it outperforms humans in almost all non-manual tasks. It is only a matter of time (probably months, not years) until this technology finds its way deep into our occupational lives. Just as the fence replaced the shepherd, AI will make most of today’s service industry obsolete.
This goes out to programmers, graphic designers, consultants, and consultants such as myself – we have to stay ahead of the game. The only way to keep up with the development is learn how to use automated artificial intelligence to improve our skills and our service. And better learn it fast.
As a society, we face a different issue. We ought to ask ourselves how much more technological progress we are willing to achieve without sharing its benefits more equally. But who knows – maybe automated AI will figure that one out for us too…
What do you think? Want to exchange thoughts about AI and AutoGPT?
Let me know in the comments or get in touch!
This post is also available in German.
Photo credit header: Lyman Hansel Gerona / Unsplash.com
