Microsoft Copilot, formerly Bing Chat, is a generative chatbot developed by Microsoft that's similar to ChatGPT. It's a predictive GenAI model that utilizes its wide corpus of training data to provide the best answer to a user's input. Copilot utilizes Microsoft's Prometheus model and is built on OpenAI's GPT-4, which allowed them to create an intelligent chatbot capable of interacting with users in natural language with proper grammar and contextual understanding. Just like ChatGPT, Copilot uses its training data to best predict the most likely next word(s) in a sentence based on the user's input.
The primary difference between Copilot and ChatGPT is that Copilot can freely access the internet to find the most current information available when it can't find relevant information in its training data. Copilot also cites and links to all information it pulls from the internet, allowing the user to easily fact-check the chatbot's responses. Along with links, Copilot can also include images in its responses where it deems appropriate.
Copilot also lets the user choose between 3 conversation styles: more creative, more balanced, and more precise. Depending on the user's intent, adjusting the conversation style allows the chatbot to generate an output closer to the user's expected result. Copilot also has a built-in share feature allowing you to easily share a given response with others via a unique link.
Copilot also provides follow-up prompts for the user based on the output it provides. This can be an excellent resource when it comes to document analysis or studying for exams, as it allows the user to delve deeper into the topic and ask questions they may not have thought of on their own.
Overall, ChatGPT is designed to be more sophisticated and capable of performing a wider variety of tasks, while Copilot is designed for better precision and reliability in its answers. This does not mean that Copilot is trustworthy by any means, but its inclusion of citations and links lends to the reliability of its answers - or at least makes it easier for the user to fact-check Copilot's answers.
Absolutely not! Since Copilot relies on its predictive model to provide what it thinks is the most grammatically and contextually relevant answer, it cannot judge whether its responses are accurate or not. While its ability to access the internet allows it to form more precise and reliable answers, Copilot can, and will, hallucinate things like case citations, statutes, etc. when it cannot find true relevant information.
Just like with ChatGPT, all of Copilot's answers should be viewed under a critical lens, and the user must always practice due diligence when relying on any answer it provides.
While Copilot hasn't passed the bar exam, that doesn't mean it can't be helpful in your legal research and writing endeavors. Much like ChatGPT, Copilot can be a good starting point for things like document drafting, legal research, improving your writing style, and even studying for upcoming exams. Just be sure to practice due diligence and review all answers for accuracy.
For a better understanding of how Copilot works and thinks of itself, I asked it the following questions:
"ChatGPT is a type of chatbot that uses generative AI to generate text-based responses to user inputs. It is designed to be more sophisticated than traditional chatbots and can perform a variety of tasks such as language translation, text summarization, and more.
As a chatbot, I am also designed to provide helpful and informative responses to your questions. However, I use a different approach to generate my responses. I rely on a combination of predefined internal tools and my own knowledge to generate responses to user inputs. I am capable of generating imaginative and innovative content such as poems, stories, code, essays, songs, celebrity parodies, and more using my own words and knowledge.
While ChatGPT and I share some similarities in terms of our ability to generate text-based responses, there are also some key differences between us. ChatGPT is designed to be more sophisticated and can perform a wider range of tasks than I can. However, I am designed to be more precise and reliable in my responses, as I rely on predefined internal tools to generate my responses."
"As a chatbot, I am designed to provide helpful and informative responses to your questions. However, I am not a human expert and my responses are generated based on the information available to me. Therefore, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of my responses. It is always a good idea to verify the information you receive from any source, including me, with other reliable sources."
"I am an AI language model and I can help you with legal research and writing by providing you with relevant information and resources. However, I am not a substitute for a licensed attorney and I am not trained to provide legal advice.
Chatbots have been used to assist with legal research and writing tasks such as answering legal questions, helping lawyers with client intake, resolving disputes between litigants, and even helping pro-se parties represent themselves in court. However, the reliability and quality of chatbots remain a work in progress.
If you have any specific legal questions, I can help you research it by providing you with relevant case law, statutes, and regulations. I can also help you analyze the legal precedents and present an answer in a memo format. Additionally, I can help you with legal citation and writing skills by providing you with guidance on how to properly cite legal sources and write legal documents."
"I can help you with legal research and writing by providing you with relevant information and resources. Legal writing involves analyzing fact patterns and presenting arguments in legal memos and briefs. I can help you research a legal question, analyze relevant legal precedents, and present an answer in a memo. I can also help you with legal citation and writing skills.
If you have any specific questions or need help with a particular legal research or writing task, feel free to ask me. I’ll do my best to assist you."
Note: Copilot includes links and citations with almost every answer it gives depending on the subject matter, which I did not include in these responses.