OpenAI's ChatGPT became the fastest-growing software application in the world within six months of its debut. One year on, it has sparked the launch of rival chatbots, raised questions about the role of generative AI in society and disrupted several industries.

San Francisco

The release of Open AI's ChatGPT has accelerated the development of artificial intelligence and warnings about its impact on society.

Rise of AI

Viral AI chatbot ChatGPT turns one

OpenAI's viral chatbot, ChatGPT, launched on November 30, 2022. In the past year, its uncannily human-like responses have taken the world by storm. While it has answered millions of user prompts, its growing influence has also sparked serious inquiries into, and movements against, the role of AI in society. It's a conversation that also played out in a tumultuous boardroom battle that saw the sudden ouster and return of CEO Sam Altman. Here's a look at the impact ChatGPT has had on the technology sector. ChatGPT became the fastest-growing software application in the world within six months of its debut, sparking the launch of rival chatbots and a bevy of startups. Its competitors include BARD, Anthropx CLAWD, Character AI, and Microsoft's Copilot, which have seen a surge in users. But ChatGPT commands the lion's share of the market. ChatGPT's launch sparked massive investments from top tech players. Microsoft and Alphabet have invested billions to improve their cloud computing capabilities and take on more AI workloads as businesses embrace such tools. Chipmaker NVIDIA became the first and only chip company to join the $1 trillion valuation club. It's widely considered to be the biggest winner of the AI boom, due to its position as the key supplier of the chips used to power ChatGPT and other generative AI applications. With these applications running mostly on the cloud, vendors of cloud computing services like Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet have also seen their shares surge. OpenAI and its backer Microsoft have been slapped with several copyright lawsuits. Authors including John Grisham, George R.R. Martin, and Jonathan Franzen are suing over the alleged misuse of their work to train AI systems. The companies have denied the allegations.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said a security agreement inked between Kyiv and the European Union would advance "peace and prosperity" across the continent.

Brussels

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine, EU sign five year security agreement

In the U.S. presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, each candidate took aim at the other’s character and competence. While Trump seemed confident and focused, Biden seemed to ramble and lose his train of thought in a shaky performance that has reinforced concerns about his age.

Atlanta

U.S. Presidential Election

Trump and Biden battle it out for undecided vote

Palestinian refugees in the West Bank city of Jenin are bracing for more Israeli raids days after Israeli soldiers strapped an injured Palestinian to the hood of a military vehicle, triggering international anger. Israel called the man a suspected militant, but also said its soldiers violated protocol.

Jerusalem

Israel-Gaza War

Palestinians in Jenin refugee camp brace for more IDF raids

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is confident her party will win an absolute majority in parliament, form a government and impose limits on what President Emmanuel Macron can do to support Ukraine, she said days before voting starts.

Paris

France's Le Pen expects clear far-right win and power over Macron

Julian Assange spent his first night in 14 years as a free man back at home in Australia as the conservative opposition on Thursday cautioned the government against hailing the WikiLeaks founder as a hero.

Canberra

Julian Assange freed

Assange not 'a hero', says Opposition

Bolivia's army chief was arrested after deploying soldiers and tanks to government buildings, which President Luis Arce called an attempted coup. Surrounded by soldiers and tanks, the dismissed army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga claimed the armed forces aimed to restructure democracy.

Sucre

Bolivian army chief arrested for alleged coup

Kenyan police fired teargas at dozens of protesters as demonstrations continued across the country on Thursday (June 27), albeit at a smaller scale than before Kenyan President William Ruto promised to scrap a controversial finance bill.

Nairobi

Kenya protests continue after president's tax climbdown

Bolivian armed forces pulled back from the presidential palace in La Paz and a general was arrested after President Luis Arce slammed a "coup" attempt against the government and called for international support.

La Paz

Bolivia coup fails, top general arrested

The United States has stressed that its temporary aid pier in Gaza was not used in the Israeli captive rescue operation in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza that killed more than 270 people. The Pentagon said that reports linking the pier to Saturday’s Israeli assault that resulted in the freeing of four captives held by Hamas are “inaccurate”.

Sderot

U.S. investigates reasons behind Gaza pier failure

British opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak take part in BBC’s Prime Ministerial Debate, in Nottingham, Britain.

Nottingham

Sunak and Starmer clash in final UK TV debate

American journalist Evan Gershkovich's secret trial on charges of espionage began Wednesday (June 26) in the eastern Russian city of Yekaterinburg, where he was initially arrested 15 months ago. Gershkovich appeared in a courtroom's glass cage before the closed trial began with his head shaved.

Yekaterinburg

Secret Russian trial begins for U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich

Kenya's president said he would withdraw planned tax rises, bowing to pressure from protesters who had stormed parliament, launched demonstrations across the country and threatened more action this week. Medics said violent clashes between police and protesters had left at least 23 people dead across the country and scores wounded.

'I concede,' says Kenya’s Ruto as he backs down on tax hikes

Problems with Boeing's Starliner capsule have upended the original plans for the return of its two astronauts to Earth as teams look at last-minute fixes and tests for the mission that is crucial to the future of Boeing's space division.

Florida

Astronauts stuck aboard ISS as Starliner issues delay return

NATO has selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as NATO's next boss, as the war in Ukraine rages on its doorstep and uncertainty hangs over the United States' future attitude to the transatlantic alliance. So, what does his appointment mean for NATO?

NATO appoints Dutch PM Rutte as next chief

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrived in Canberra on Wednesday (June 26) after a hearing on the U.S. Pacific island territory of Saipan. He pleaded guilty to violating U.S. espionage law in a deal that allowed him to head straight home to Australia.

Assange arrives in Australia after guilty plea

Some Indians struggle to cope as Delhi suffers its worse heatwave in nearly 75 years. Hundreds have died. Hospitals are providing special services to cool people down and save their lives.

New Delhi

Hundreds die in Delhi heatwave

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday said it had issued arrest warrants for Russia's top army chief and ex-defense minister over strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure that constituted alleged war crimes.

The Hague

ICC issues arrest warrants for two top Russian officials

Hundreds gathered at the East Hotel in Canberra to celebrate Julian Assange's release, celebrating what they refer to as his 'journalistic integrity' and 'exposure of war crimes'. Not everyone is happy, with some saying he put the lives of Australian defence personnel at risk.

Hundreds gather to show support for Julian Assange's release

Julian Assange is free and back on home soil in Australia after a 14-year battle. It is unknown if he will return to WikiLeaks; his wife Stella Assange says it will take time for him to heal from the ordeal and come to terms with his freedom. The Prime Minister was on the phone with him as soon as he landed.

Julian Assange lands in Australia, speaks to PM

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walked free from a court on the U.S. Pacific island territory of Saipan after pleading guilty to violating U.S. espionage law in a deal that allowed him to head straight home to Australia.

Saipan

Julian Assange freed after U.S. guilty plea

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been released after signing a plea deal with the US in Saipan. He is due to arrive in Australia soon to spend time with his wife and family for the first time in over a decade.

Julian Assange freed by U.S. court after plea deal

The Emperor and Empress of Japan are in the UK on a state visit. It was supposed to happen in 2020, but was delayed by the Covid pandemic. The two countries are currently enjoying the closest relationship they’ve had in decades.

London

U.K.'s King Charles welcomes Japan's Emperor for state visit

A secret trial is set to begin in Russia for American Evan Gershkovich. The Wall Street Journal reporter faces espionage charges and potentially 20 years in a Russian prison.

Moscow

Trial set to begin in Russia for U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich

Kenya is heading a U.N.-backed international force tasked with containing the gangs that control most of Port-au-Prince. The deployment faces a legal challenge in Kenya, but President William Ruto's government has gone ahead, with backing from the United States.

Port-au-Prince

First group of security personnel from Kenya arrives in Haiti

Julian Assange is expected to plead guilty to one charge of conspiring to obtain and distribute classified information in a U.S. courtroom in the Northern Mariana Islands on Wednesday. Assange's release from the U.K. ends Washington's long-running efforts to prosecute the Wikileaks founder for revealing government secrets.

Julian Assange lands in U.S. Mariana Islands to formalize plea deal

A Chinese lunar probe Chang'e-6 has made history by returning with soil and rock samples from the side of the moon that's never seen from Earth. The mission increases Beijing's rivalry with the U.S. to dominate space and its resources. China aims to put a person on the moon before 2030.

Beijing

China's lunar probe returns from far side of the moon

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has promised an "overwhelming and resolute" response to North Korean provocations as Pyongyang sent a fifth round of waste-filled balloons to its southern neighbor. This comes as the South Korea marks 74 years since the start of the Korean War.

Seoul

North Korea sends more garbage-filled balloons to South

The European Union will open membership talks with Ukraine on Tuesday (June 25), giving the country a political boost in the midst of its war against Russia's invasion. A long and tough road still lies ahead before it could join the bloc though.

Ukraine set for symbolic start of E.U. membership talks

Police opened fire as protesters attempted to storm Kenya's parliament compound on Tuesday (June 25), amid protests against proposed tax hikes that brought thousands onto the streets.

Several shot dead amid Kenya protests

Israel's Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday (June 25) that the state must begin drafting ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students into the military, a decree with the potential to divide Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition. Lawmakers voiced conflicting views on the decision.

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Rise of AI