Generative AI is evolving at record speed while CEOs are still learning the technology’s business value and risks. Here, we offer some of the generative AI essentials.

Amid the excitement surrounding generative AI since the release of ChatGPT, Bard, Claude, Midjourney, and other content-creating tools, CEOs are understandably wondering: Is this tech hype, or a game-changing opportunity? And if it is the latter, what is the value to my business?

The public-facing version of ChatGPT reached 100 million users in just two months. It democratized AI in a manner not previously seen while becoming by far the fastest-growing app ever. Its out-of-the-box accessibility makes generative AI different from all AI that came before it. Users don’t need a degree in machine learning to interact with or derive value from it; nearly anyone who can ask questions can use it. And, as with other breakthrough technologies such as the personal computer or iPhone, one generative AI platform can give rise to many applications for audiences of any age or education level and in any location with internet access.