Originally raising fears of AI products being used for cheating on homework,OpenAI is now exploring how it can get its popular ChatGPT chatbot into classrooms.

Brad Lightcap, OpenAI’s chief operating officer, said that the company will form a team to explore educational applications of a technology that has threatened to upend industries, stoked new legislation and become a popular learning tool, during a conference in San Francisco.

Last November, OpenAI, with the support of Microsoft, kicked off the generative AI craze by releasing its ChatGPT chatbot, which became one of the world’s fastest- growing applications.

The generative AI tool is trained on reams of data and can create brand-new humanlike content, helping users spin up term papers, complete science homework and indeed write entire novels.

After ChatGPT’s launch, regulators scrambled to catch up; the European Union revised its AI Act and theU.S. kicked off AI regulation efforts.

The launch happened during the middle of the academy time which also caught preceptors off- guard when they realized it could be used for cheating and plagiarism, which also sparked a counter reaction and academy bans.

But within a few months, preceptors started seeing how ChatGPT could be salutary, he said.

A new team at OpenAI would be an extension of the work the company has already done to integrate its technology into the classroom.

OpenAI has established partnerships with education groups such as Khan Academy to create an AI- powered tutor and with Schmidt Futures to give grants to education groups in under served communities.

The market is large, global education and training expenditures will reach$ 10 trillion by 2030, estimates Sydney- based research firm HolonIQ.

There are myriad ways to use ChatGPT in classrooms, said Andrew Mayne, a former OpenAI employee who works with educators through his AI consulting firm Interdimensional. For students, it could be a tutor or it can tailor content for different learning styles. For teachers, it can assist with curriculum writing or be a creative classroom aide, for instance creating introductions in Old English during a class in medieval times.