GPT-4o vs. GPT-4: The Evolution of Multimodal AI

OpenAI’s latest release, GPT-4o, promises improved multimodal capabilities and increased efficiency. Explore the differences between GPT-4o and its predecessor, GPT-4.

Multimodal AI models are capable of processing multiple data types, such as text, images, and audio.

GPT-4 and GPT-4o are advanced generative AI models that OpenAI developed for use within the ChatGPT interface. Both models are trained to generate natural-sounding text in response to users’ prompts, and they can engage in interactive, back-and-forth conversations, retaining memory and context to inform future responses.

Differences between GPT-4o and GPT-4

In many ways, GPT-4o and GPT-4 are similar. Both are advanced OpenAI models with vision and audio capabilities and the ability to recall information and analyze uploaded documents. Each has a 128,000-token context window and a knowledge cutoff date in late 2023 (October for GPT-4o, December for GPT-4).

The context window allows the models to process and analyze large amounts of data.

However, GPT-4o and GPT-4 also differ significantly in several areas: multimodal capabilities; performance and efficiency; pricing; and language support.

Multimodality

Multimodal AI models are capable of processing multiple data types, such as text, images, and audio. In a sense, both GPT-4 and GPT-4o are multimodal: In the ChatGPT interface, users can create and upload images and use voice chat regardless of whether they’re using GPT-4 or GPT-4o. However, the way that the two models approach multimodality is very different – it’s one of the biggest differentiators between GPT-4o and GPT-4.

The multimodal interface allows users to interact with the models in various ways.

Performance and Efficiency

GPT-4o is also designed to be quicker and more computationally efficient than GPT-4 across the board, not just for multimodal queries. According to OpenAI, GPT-4o is twice as fast as the most recent version of GPT-4.

GPT-4o’s improved efficiency leads to faster processing times.

Pricing

One advantage of GPT-4o’s improved computational efficiency is its lower pricing. For developers using OpenAI’s API, GPT-4o is by far the more cost-effective option.

GPT-4o’s lower pricing makes it a more attractive option for developers.

Language Support

GPT-4o also offers significantly better support for non-English languages compared with GPT-4. In particular, OpenAI has improved tokenization for languages that don’t use a Western alphabet, such as Hindi, Chinese, and Korean.

GPT-4o’s improved language support enables more users to interact with the model.

In conclusion, GPT-4o and GPT-4 are both advanced AI models, but they differ significantly in terms of multimodal capabilities, performance, pricing, and language support. GPT-4o’s improved efficiency, lower pricing, and better language support make it a more attractive option for developers and users alike.