The launch of artificial intelligence-powered ChatGPT late last year has set off an A.I. race. Microsoft has invested billions into OpenAI, the company that created the chatbot, and other tech giants like Google and Meta are rushing to catch up.
The rapid pace at which technology like ChatGPT is developing and becoming embedded with people’s lives could be another “iPhone moment,” Bank of America analysts wrote in a research note on Tuesday. Just as the iPhone led to an explosion in the use of smartphones and phone apps, ChatGPT-like technology is revolutionizing A.I., the bank said in a note on Tuesday.
“The adoption rate of this technology is so far unprecedented,” said Haim Israel, a global strategist at Bank of America who coauthored the note. “And, in the same time, the abilities of A.I. large language models, like ChatGPT is developing in warp-speed—jumping 1,900 times in size in less than 4 years, and [it] could jump a further 10-fold or more in just couple of months.”
The report cited four reasons why ChatGPT-like technology is pushing A.I. forward: It’s democratizing data by making it more available; being adopted by a large number of people; spurred technological development at “warp speed”; and has numerous use cases.
ChatGPT has gained huge momentum with people who use it to do everything from craft beer recipes to write speeches. The report found that on average, 53% more people were discussing ChatGPT on Twitter compared to a topic like inflation since the tool was launched in November. ChatGPT attracted one million users within five days of it being introduced compared to TikTok, which took 14 days to achieve the same.
“We are at a defining moment—like the internet in the ’90s—where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is moving towards mass adoption, with large language models like ChatGPT finally enabling us to fully capitalize on the data revolution,” the report said.
Beyond just revolutionizing the use of technology, Bank of America predicts A.I.’s economic impact could be worth up to $15.7 trillion by 2030.
Bank of America did not immediately return Fortune’s request for comment.
The report comes amid a dizzying number of developments in the A.I. space. And despite the popularity of generative A.I. tools, they aren’t without risks. OpenAI’s founder, Sam Altman, has warned that ChatGPT is still “incredibly limited” and should not be relied upon for “anything important.”
There have also been several instances of chatbots acting out. Microsoft’s Bing A.I. became testy when users interacted with it over long durations. Google’s Bard produced factually inaccurate answers in a public demo, costing the company billions of dollars in market value when its shares tumbled. The promise of ChatGPT-like technology is also threatening jobs in some industries due to its low cost, efficiency, and ease of use.
