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What is all this AI hype about?

AGI, or Artificial General Intelligence, is actually quite different from what most of us would colloquially refer to as ‘AI’ these days, in the form of Chat GPT. AGI refers to a highly autonomous machine intelligence able to perform any cognitive task a human being is able to, but we’re not there yet. An AGI would possess the ability to understand, learn, and apply knowledge across multiple domains; and to reason, and solve problems like a human. In essence, AGI would demonstrate true intelligence like that of humans, and not be limited to performing well on only specific sets of tasks.

GPT, or Generative Pre-trained Transformer, on the other hand, is a type of AI that belongs to a family of transformer-based language models. GPT models have been designed for various natural language processing tasks, including text generation, translation, summarization, and question-answering, with the most famous being OpenAI’s Chat GPT-3. These models are pre-trained on massive amounts of textual data and can generate creative, context-aware, human-like text based on given input prompts.

Where the difference between AGI and GPTs becomes critically evident, is in the ‘understanding’ of the text. Whereas an AGI would be able to process and comprehend what words and concepts actually mean, GPTs play a bit of a charade while making themselves appear to have intelligence, even on the odd occasion they’re dead wrong. Have you ever asked ChatGPT to count its own words or phrases? No amount of prompt engineering wizardry is going to fix the underlying issue.

“Whereas an AGI would be able to process and comprehend what words and abstract concepts actually mean, GPTs play a bit of a charade while making themselves appear to have intelligence…”

Actually, if there are no provisions in the model for GPTs to admit they may not have the correct answer, they will go ahead and make one up. When confronted, amusingly enough, they usually respond in a ‘my bad’ kind of fashion, as if they are naughty juveniles becoming acutely aware that the answers they copied from someone else’s test were wrong. There is definitely room for improvement, and one current theory is that GPTs will ‘grow up’ at some point and become full-fledged AGIs. We will have to wait and see.

Limited as they are in their infancy, though, GPTs have the potential to disrupt the blockchain industry in such a vast number of ways that it would take a whole series of articles to cover even a subset of the practical use-cases. From automating user technical support, providing tutoring and tutorials, to instantly empowering users and builders alike with smart contract creation and auditing tools requiring no previous experience, we only hope to touch on but a few of the use-cases for AI here today for the purpose of this article.

What is the advantage of using Astar Network’s AI?

“!Astari, can you look over the following [code example] and tell me if devs could rug?” — Cautious Degen

Astar’s AI assistant, which our community has affectionately named Astari, utilizes a GPT, however we take it one step further. By extending the language model and therefore its application specifically to the realm of Astar Network, blockchain technology, and smart contract development, we’ve created a powerful tool with a set of features that our entire community should find useful.

“The withdraw function in this smart contract allows a user to withdraw funds. It takes an amount as an input parameter and transfers the specified amount of tokens or coins from the contract’s balance to the user’s address. However, the function also contains a recursive call vulnerability , which would allow an attacker to exploit the withdraw function to drain the funds …” — Astari AI

Astari is available on our official documentation portal Astari on Astar Docs

Web3 moves pretty fast, and if you blink, you might miss it. Would you trust the quality of information you received about Polkadot, XCM, or ink! language, for example, if it came from an AI trained in 2019? I didn’t think so!

With its specialized training and automated reindexing of common sources, such as our official Medium publications and Github repositories, Astari is able to provide current information on just about everything related to Astar Network, from news and ways to interact with the network and community, to tutorials, and even code examples.

Being such a transformative technology, tools like Astari and eventually AGI will impact web3 in ways we haven’t even imagined yet. With AI monitoring and indexing blockchains on the fly, machine-learning algorithms able to spot, mitigate, and report threat incidents and trends as they emerge, and as they enhance our ability to scale through optimized consensus methods and more efficient distribution of blockspace, the potential for innovation is immense. We are at the dawn of a new age.

“!Astari, who works longer hours , Sota or Maarten?” — Cheeky Starduster

Eventually, AI assistants will be everywhere, and we will look back at search engines as having been a necessary, but somewhat crude solution; pale by comparison to ‘smart’ search engines like Astari we talk to as if they’re people. This ability to converse in a natural way is one of AI’s disruptive use cases, making it difficult for users of these new AI platforms to revert back to the ‘old’ way of doing things, which is strange to say, of course, as at the time of this writing Chat GPT-4, which Astari uses by default, is only two months old.

“I’m sorry, I don’t get involved with or answer questions about office politics, but would be happy to answer your questions related to Astar Network, Polkadot, blockchain, or software development!” — Astari AI

Now, we should all have played around with AI at least once already, but in any case, if you haven’t, now is your opportunity! Go ahead and bookmark the link to our official documentation portal (where you can converse normally with Astari any time), then join the Discord channel, and give it a try as you follow along!

Astari on Discord

In the meantime, !astari, why don’t you take the opportunity to introduce yourself?

“Hello, I am Astari, an AI assistant trained to answer questions about Astar Network. I reside in the Astar Network Discord server, specifically in the ask-astari-ai channel, and you can also find me on the official documentation portal.

As an AI assistant, my purpose is to support inquiries made in the context of Astar, especially by developers. I can provide code examples when necessary and offer help on various Astar Network-related topics.

I strive to provide accurate, up-to-date, and relevant information to assist developers and other individuals interested in the Astar Network ecosystem. By sharing valuable resources, references, and tips, I aim to contribute positively to the understanding and growth of the Astar Network.”

You can try Astari yourself on Discord by placing an !astari command in front of your question, as shown below. Please Note: Do not use !Astari with a capital, as that is interpreted differently for now.

!astari what’s the latest news?

!astari can you analyze the following [smart contract code] and tell me what it does?

Go ahead and ask about anything related to blockchain, or for more specific information about any of the following:

Astar Network, Shiden, Shibuya, Polkadot
How to set up a wallet
DAO governance, referenda, and related discussions
Smart contracts, runtime environments, and development tools
Software development, and code on Github

Astari can build and audit basic smart contracts for both Wasm and EVM environments

Integrations
Investors and sponsors
News and updates
Account interactions and error messages
Network IDs, RPCs, and endpoints
Nodes, Collators, and infrastructure maintenance

don't be a cheeky starduster!

Not yet a perfect solution, but it’s a start

With its advanced AI capabilities and specialized knowledge of the Astar Network ecosystem, Astari aims to enhance your experience and help you navigate the world of blockchain technology more easily. Powerful as it is for now, it will still make some mistakes, but as early adopters of the technology we expect the quality of answers and service availability to improve substantially over time.

For now if you experience a delay longer than a few minutes or an ‘unable to respond at this time’ message, please try again later, and if you notice any serious discrepancies between an answer you expect to receive and what you actually do (or bonus points if you break it 😏) feel free to reach out to me on Discord. I’m @thetokenblonde#7894.

In summary

As we continue to witness the rapid growth and evolution of AI and blockchain, it’s crucial to stay informed and make the most of the opportunities they present. Whether you are a developer, investor, or simply curious about the potential of Astar Network, Astari is your personal guide to understanding, exploring, and leveraging the power of web3 with this groundbreaking technology.

So, don’t hesitate to engage with Astari and unlock the wealth of knowledge it holds. Join the Astar Network Discord server, head over to the 🤖ask-astari-ai channel, or visit our official documentation portal and let the conversation begin! The future of AI and blockchain is within your reach, and Astari is here to make it accessible and exciting for everyone.

Together, let’s embark on this journey of discovery, innovation, and transformative possibilities. Welcome to Astar Network, where AI and blockchain converge to shape the future of decentralized technologies.

About Astar Network

Astar is Japan’s most popular smart contract platform, supporting both EVM and WebAssembly (Wasm) environments, and interoperability between them using a Cross-Virtual Machine. Astar Network is friendly to all kinds of developers, and tools and languages they already know. Backed by the shared security of Polkadot, Astar shines brilliantly on its own within a vibrant and healthy ecosystem, and is a leading star in the blockchain industry overall, driving international corporate adoption, and consumer interest in web3 technologies.

Astar’s Build2Earn program is designed to grow the network in an innovative way, while simultaneously rewarding participants and builders. It allows developers to earn incentives for building and maintaining their decentralized applications, and users to earn incentives for supporting their favorite projects, all while encouraging growth of the ecosystem overall.