ChatGPT also sinks companies: an educational firm collapses by admitting that students use more artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence is something of a godsend for many companies.

It promises million-dollar savings in personnel that they will no longer need, and to speed up processes that used to take much longer.

For other companies, however, it's more of an existential threat.

The American Chegg, from the educational sector, can be included in this last group, which, among other things, rents and sells digital and physical textbooks, provides tutorials and offers online exercises

help prepare for an exam or do homework.

“Since March we have seen a significant increase in student interest in ChatGPT.

We now believe that it is having an impact on our new customer growth rate,” said CEO Dan Rosensweig during the results presentation.

At a time when investors are looking closely at the changes that new technology can cause, rewarding its potential beneficiaries and mercilessly attacking the losers of the paradigm shift, the manager probably underestimated the market's reaction.

The shares of the firm based in Santa Clara (California) lost 48.41% of its value in the session on Tuesday, that is, it reduced its value practically in half after evaporating almost 1,000 million dollars.

The phrase came out very expensive.

For this reason, Rosensweig tried to calm things down in a later interview with the financial channel CNBC.

He called the stock market reaction “exaggerated” and sought to place his firm on the side of the artificial intelligence winners by recalling that they plan to launch a platform powered by GPT-4 in May.

Furthermore, he questioned the reliability of ChatGPT.

“Students can't make mistakes when they do homework or learn things.

ChatGPT is often wrong, and it's not going to be right anytime soon."

The stock market crash caused a contagion effect on the stock market to other relevant players in the sector, such as the British Pearson, formerly owner of the

and now focused on education.

Its managers also came to the fore to deny that they are going to be harmed, and explained to the FT that their position as creators and owners of quality content places them on the side of the lucky ones, because combined with generative AI they can gain in sophistication.

It seems premature to guess which companies will disappear under the weight of the competition from ChatGPT and its replicas, but anticipating equals making money.

Trend-hunters can bet short against companies that may be affected, just as they bet up on winners, including chipmaker Nvidia, which supplies the market with the most widely used models for artificial intelligence.

Meanwhile, the feeling is one of uncertainty.

Analysts at US investment bank Jefferies have downgraded their recommendation on Chegg from buy to hold,

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