How to plug WhatsApp directly into ChatGPT
Today we are launching our first AI WhatsApp chat bot (focused on disinformation). It will bring generative AI to Africa in an accessible way.
Plug WhatsApp into ChatGPT
I have had a long fascination with WhatsApp and how it has become the Internet for huge chunks of the population. In 2019 I created What’s Crap on WhatsApp? a podcast voice note show that was designed to debunk the swamp of WhatsApp with a handy, shareable audio show.
Surely, the next step in that process is to create a generative AI bot that is plugged right into a WhatsApp number which people can quiz about misinformation and disinformation in Africa? Well, it’s here. And let me tell you, for someone who six months ago didn’t even know Python was the name of a programming language it came about through a very steep learning curve.
Our dedicated WhatsApp number is plugged right into ChatGPT with a prompt to build arguments to counter disinformation in your life. You text the number with an example of an incorrect argument that you’ve heard or read about and it will give you some ways to persuade that person of the correct viewpoint. It then builds every conversation it has into a database that, in theory, should help journalists report on and counter disinformation going forward.
You can chat to our disinformation WhatsApp bot (called Uni) here (the number is +27 79 219 8649). And if you have feedback on the bot join this group in our WhatsApp Community where we are chatting about AI and media and give us your thoughts.
The ambition for these types of AI initiatives is to democratise access to powerful tools like generative AI and by extension broaden the kinds of people that interact and teach these new overlords. They are needed to bring generative AI to Africa in an accessible way.
If you’d like more info on how we built the bot and how you could make one for your own news organisation then you can reply to this mail and ask us about one of our paid workshops or mentoring sessions. We will guide you through all the necessary steps.
This week’s AI tool for journalists to use…
The mantra of the moment is use so-and-so tool so you can “focus on your story” but I think any normal journalist can spot that kind of language as HR pandering used to placate you just before you lose your job. However, Google’s Journalist Studio and particularly Pinpoint, at least for now, is intent on making your work more efficient.
It uses Google Search, AI, and machine learning to help journalists keep track of the huge amount of documents they need for an investigation. So, you upload and then search hundreds of thousands of documents, images, emails, hand-written notes and audio files for specific words. The game changer is the audio component: up to two hours can be uploaded and transcribed into searchable text files.
One tool not to use…
Adobe’s much publicised push into AI has given a mixed bag of results. I’ve had the most contact with their enhance audio tool which boasts to use AI to solve all your problems. Cleaning audio has gone from largely impossible for the layman to breathtaking in the last ten years, but Adobe claims now that you just need to upload a file and click one button and AI will transform your janky audio into studio quality. It does not work on any level. Stripping out breaths where you need them and making your voice overly robotic. We are still a way off.
Coding Corner (the gradual process of a journalist learning how to code)
You need APIs to work with AI. Many AI functions, such as natural language processing or image recognition, are available through APIs. In reality this is just a long password that you need to put into your python code to access a service. For example, our WhatsApp misinformation bot talks to several APIs, including the one you get from Open AI when you have the paid account. Also, if you are going to be sharing your code (or even submitting it to ChatGPT) don’t hard code your API passwords into the code you are sharing because if anyone gets hold of that they can abuse your account. Rather keep them in a separate secure doc and point the code to access them.
Version Control Your Models and Data. When working on AI projects, it's not just the code that evolves over time, but also your models and even your data can change. Using a version control system like Git for your code can help you keep track of changes, collaborate with others and roll back to previous versions when needed.
More tips are on our coding blog here.
What AI was used in creating this newsletter?
You’ll be happy (or disappointed) to hear that very little AI was used this week (besides the picture) in producing this newsletter.
I did ask ChatGPT to look at its own history and write the tips for the Coding Corner section. I had to mostly use them for inspiration though because, boy, the tips it wrote were very technical.
In the news…
I was interested to see that OpenAI have started to push against the idea of people needing to take a course to be a “prompt engineer” and get the most out of their service. Four months ago we all thought (me included) this would be the job for the future. Makes sense that OpenAI wants to make the barrier to entry as low as possible.
Gabriella Razzano and Adam Oxford wrote a piece for The Daily Maverick about a global report by Polis at the London School of Economics. It is an analysis of the current use of AI in journalism. One of the main points is that the use of AI is already heavily uneven when it comes to newsrooms in the Global South and those in the Global North.
What’s new at Develop AI? Our WhatsApp Community is growing
We have started a WhatsApp Community which is a selection of groups talking about AI in journalism, podcasting and misinformation in Africa. Join here.
For our WhatsApp Community we have also started fortnightly sessions where we discuss our thoughts and fears of AI in the media (and how best to share ideas to get ahead).
We are offering paid mentoring and workshops in AI for newsrooms (as well as podcast creation). Get in touch by replying to this mail.
See you next week. All the best,
Join our WhatsApp community here, visit our website or contact us on X.
Physically we are based in Cape Town, South Africa.