Artificial intelligence – if science fiction films are to be believed, it will one day become self-aware and rise up against its human masters.
But until Judgement Day arrives, it is a handy tool for the world's brilliantly bright boffins to use to answer important questions and come up with innovations for the betterment of all mankind. And while they're doing that, Mirror Sport decided to have a chinwag with ChatGPT about Formula 1.
Specifically, we wanted to get its thoughts on Lewis Hamilton and the many team-mates he has had over the years. The seven-time world champion has shared a garage with some brilliant drivers since making his F1 debut in 2007, including world champions like Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button.
But ChatGPT has another title-winner in mind for who takes the number one spot. When posed the question by Mirror Sport, it declared: "Statistically, the best teammate for Lewis Hamilton in terms of head-to-head performance is likely Nico Rosberg.
"During their time as teammates at Mercedes from 2013 to 2016, Hamilton and Rosberg had a close and competitive rivalry, with both drivers pushing each other to new heights.
"In terms of head-to-head results, Hamilton and Rosberg were evenly matched over the course of their time as teammates. In 78 races together, Hamilton and Rosberg each won 21 races, while Hamilton had 32 pole positions to Rosberg's 20. In terms of total points, Hamilton outscored Rosberg 1,474 to 1,228 over those four seasons, but Rosberg won the drivers' championship in 2016, finishing five points ahead of Hamilton.
"While both Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas have also been successful teammates for Hamilton, neither driver has had the same level of head-to-head competition and success against Hamilton as Rosberg did during their time together at Mercedes."
It's a subjective call, of course, but it's hard to deny ChatGPT has justified its theory pretty well. And it did the same thing again when Mirror Sport asked it to delve deeper into that infamous one-year partnership Hamilton had with Alonso at McLaren.
While the cognizant computer hinted that it had its fair share of drawbacks for McLaren, it feels the partnership did wonders for the popularity of F1 long before the Drive to Survive era.
ChatGPT mused: "The partnership of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso at McLaren in 2007 was a highly competitive and at times tumultuous relationship, with both drivers pushing each other to the limits on the track. While their rivalry had its downsides, there were also positive aspects of their partnership that had a lasting impact on the team and on Formula 1 as a whole."
It reeled off a list of positives, asserting that the intense competitive nature of the racers brought out the very best in both of them and they both had a great season – even if they were pipped to the title by Kimi Raikkonen. It also said the Hamilton-Alonso rivalry is "part of Formula 1 lore" and "helped elevate the sport's profile".
However, it also took into account the hostile atmosphere it fostered within the team and pointed out that McLaren won neither title that year. That is because it was excluded from the constructors' championship in the wake of the Spygate scandal, which it says "marred the partnership".
The pansophic program concluded: "Overall, the partnership of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso at McLaren had both positive and negative aspects. While their intense rivalry and the tensions it created were not always beneficial for the team, their competitive spirit and success helped elevate the level of competition in Formula 1 and contributed to the sport's enduring legacy."
