OpenAI, known for its widely used ChatGPT chatbot, has unveiled Canvas, a novel interface designed to enhance the user experience for writing and coding projects beyond the simple chat format. Canvas presents a fresh way to engage with ChatGPT, opening in a dedicated window that facilitates collaboration between users and the AI on various projects. This marks the first significant update to ChatGPT's visual interface since it debuted two years ago.
This groundbreaking update is currently in its early beta phase, with plans for rapid capability enhancements. Built on the GPT-4o model, Canvas can be manually selected in the model picker during its beta period.
Starting Thursday, Canvas will be accessible globally to ChatGPT Plus and Team users, with Enterprise and Edu users set to gain access the following week. Eventually, OpenAI intends to extend Canvas availability to all ChatGPT Free users once its beta phase concludes.
OpenAI has specifically trained GPT-4o to function as a collaborative creative partner, capable of identifying when to initiate a Canvas session, executing precise edits, and undertaking comprehensive rewrites. The model excels at understanding broader contexts to offer accurate feedback and suggestions.
Canvas activates automatically when ChatGPT identifies a context where it would be beneficial, and users can also prompt its use by including "use Canvas" within their requests. This functionality allows engagement with ongoing projects, providing a new interface tailored for tasks involving editing and revisions.
The company acknowledges that while ChatGPT’s chat interface is user-friendly for many needs, it falls short in scenarios requiring in-depth project work. Canvas, by contrast, offers an enriched interface for these more complex endeavors. It enhances understanding of project context, allowing users to highlight specific areas of focus, and provides control over the project through direct text or code editing. A menu featuring shortcuts enables users to adjust writing length, debug code, and seamlessly perform other tasks. Additionally, previous work versions can be retrieved using the Canvas back button.
Canvas also simplifies tracking ChatGPT's iterative changes in coding, making it easier to follow revisions, a typically challenging process in chat format. OpenAI plans to increase transparency for these types of edits continually.
This new development comes as OpenAI, founded in 2015, has achieved a post-money valuation of $157 billion following a recent funding round that secured $6.6 billion. The company is focused on accelerating its advancements in artificial general intelligence (AGI) for the benefit of humanity. Weekly, over 250 million individuals globally utilize ChatGPT to enhance their professional, creative, and educational pursuits. Originally established as a non-profit to develop safe and beneficial AGI, OpenAI is reportedly considering restructuring its core operations into a for-profit benefit business model to attract further investment.