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Last week was quite something! As I often do when things start to feel overwhelming, I began rereading Rick Atkinson’s World War II Liberation Trilogy. Yet, more and more, I find myself frustrated by the lack of effective generalship Atkinson describes, as well as by Eisenhower’s inability—or unwillingness—to assert control and communicate clearly. So, what did I read instead?
The impact of AI
A recent Wall Street Journal article highlights the impact of generative AI on the homework help site Chegg. Originally a textbook rental company, Chegg quickly morphed into a homework help platform, often used as a tool that facilitates student cheating.
For a $19.95 monthly fee, students can log in and receive homework assistance, either through pre-written answers to common questions or from a network of experts, typically based in India. Generative AI has posed a significant threat to this service and business model, as students can now use tools like ChatGPT to find homework answers for free.
Around 2022, as Chegg was already struggling with late-pandemic turbulence in its business, employees asked for resources to develop AI tools for automating answers. Chegg’s leaders initially denied the request, said a person who worked on the effort.
It quickly became clear that students were turning to generative AI for tasks they would have previously taken to Chegg. In response, Chegg initially partnered first with OpenAI to create a custom service called CheggMate, trained on Chegg’s materials, to answer student questions. Later, they teamed up with another startup, Scale AI, to develop tailored services for different academic systems.
However, as a recent Wall Street Journal article highlights, these changes have not helped stem the loss of users from the platform since the widespread adoption of generative AI.
