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The companies centered on ChatGPT, the shark, and the Remora fish

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AI Marketing Strategy Digital Entrepreneurship Strategy Value Proposition Startups DigitalStrategy OpenAI ChatGPT Innovation
A striking painting of a shark with an orange face, accompanied by a nearby fish. The word AI is written in the painting.
Illustration derived from an image generated through Stable Diffusion XL
ChatGPT-based companies, the shark, and the Remora fish

When you possess an entrepreneurial spirit, you identify a new technological wave on the horizon, and the desire to ride it can become almost irresistible. This action is precisely what many startups and professionals have done, creating products and services around ChatGPT.

They were smart enough to spot a ‘blue ocean’ with little competition and acted swiftly to create, launch, and promote their products. It’s truly remarkable, and I admire their foresight.

This opportunity has yielded positive results for these startups and OpenAI: the startups rode the wave of a growing trend, while OpenAI saw an increase in traffic and conversions through this collaboration.

Think of it like the relationship between the Remora fish and the shark. The Remora, a small fish that attaches itself to smooth surfaces using a suction cup, spends most of its life clinging to a host animal, such as a shark. This fish cleans parasites from the shark’s skin and from inside its mouth.

The Remora gains safety and some leftover food while the shark receives a cleaning service. Indeed, since the shark cannot clean itself, it allows the Remora to attach because of its usefulness.

However, the shark might occasionally become irritated if the Remora behaves oddly or becomes bothersome. It’s not a perfectly balanced relationship.

Drawing parallels with certain businesses based on ChatGPT, many of these companies believed they were establishing a mutually beneficial relationship. For example, consider a ChatGPT-based PDF analysis tool such as ChatPDF, AskYourPDF, or LightPDF. They offered a service that OpenAI couldn’t provide.

Until October 29th. With the latest ChatGPT Plus version, individuals can now send PDFs, documents, and other files to the chatbot and make inquiries. Moreover, from yesterday onward, OpenAI allows everyone to create a customized ChatGPT.

Under these circumstances, will these businesses survive?

As Emerge highlights, these entrepreneurs have likely failed to ask themselves the question Steve Jobs once posed: are they building an entire business or just a feature?

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