The proportion of Irish people using artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT is lower than in some other countries, the company behind the application told the Taoiseach.
US-based OpenAI’s European headquarters is in Dublin where it has 55 employees.
Its app, ChatGPT, is used to provide information and to help with writing and coding. OpenAI says it has more than a million weekly users here.
The Taoiseach was told about levels of use of ChatGPT in Ireland while meeting OpenAI’s chief financial officer, Sarah Friar, according to records released under the Freedom of Information Act.
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Correspondence shows OpenAI sought the meeting with Mr Martin and it took place in Government Buildings on May 27th.
A Department of An Taoiseach note of the meeting says Ms Friar, who is originally from Northern Ireland, outlined developments in AI technologies and there was “a discussion on the opportunities and potential use cases of generative AI, including in healthcare and education”.
Ms Friar said ChatGPT had been rolled out to all secondary school students in Estonia “to complement the curriculum”.
A Government statement to The Irish Times said: “There are currently no plans to roll out ChatGPT to classrooms” in Ireland.
The note of the meeting also said Ms Friar “noted that 28 per cent of the population in Ireland is using ChatGPT weekly, compared to 50 per cent in the best countries”.
The document says: “This is predominantly among younger cohorts, but she sees a big opportunity across all age groups.”
Ms Friar also “stressed the importance of skilling the workforce to prepare for the future”.
Mr Martin is said to have referenced a review of Ireland’s National Digital Strategy this year and he “underlined our desire to embrace AI”.
OpenAI did not set out countries where 50 per cent of the population use ChatGPT weekly in response to a query from The Irish Times.
Ms Friar wrote to Mr Martin two days after the meeting to say she was “heartened by your conviction that artificial intelligence can be a powerful engine for Ireland’s next phase of economic growth”.
“OpenAl cares deeply about Ireland’s economic future,” she wrote. “We view our presence here as strategic – not symbolic – and our Dublin team stands ready to help in any way we can.”
OpenAI contacted Mr Martin again in October seeking a meeting between him and the company’s chief strategy officer, Jason Kwon, in November “to continue OpenAI’s ongoing dialogue with your Department on how we can support Ireland’s AI vision and its leadership within the EU”.
A Government statement said the Taoiseach was “not in a position to meet with Mr Kwon, due to pre-existing diary commitments”.
An OpenAI statement said: “With over one million ChatGPT users now in Ireland, we are pleased to support the Government’s ambitions and help make the country a leader in the responsible and beneficial use of AI.”
It also said the company “constructively engages with governments in countries where it operates, including Ireland, home to our European headquarters, which has 55 employees and growing”.
It highlighted the recently announced “OpenAI for Ireland” initiative, which “focuses on AI literacy and skills for tech builders and start-ups, alongside a national ‘SME Booster’ programme to provide hands-on AI training”.
