The add-in for Microsoft Word allows users to query OpenAI's ChatGPT and watch generated content appear directly in the document they're drafting. The Basic edition costs $10 and offers two-paragraph responses, while the Pro edition costs $25 and has all available OpenAI language models and a configurable response length.
Ghostwriter's Creator
The creator of Ghostwriter, Patrick Husting, is now working on add-ins for Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook through his one-person development shop, Creative Data Studios. He previously founded and ran a business-intelligence consulting company and currently develops and runs The Equestrian app.
Microsoft's Partnership with OpenAI
Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI has sparked speculation in the tech industry, and CEO Satya Nadella has announced that every Microsoft product will eventually have AI capabilities. Microsoft recently announced that it would soon make ChatGPT available as part of its Azure OpenAI Service, and existing integrations of OpenAI technology in Microsoft products include GitHub Copilot.
Ghostwriter vs. Microsoft's Future Integrations
While Microsoft's future integrations of OpenAI technologies will likely be more sophisticated, Ghostwriter solves a basic problem. The add-in works in Word for Office 2019 and newer versions, but Microsoft's integrations will probably require upgrading to the latest Office version. Ghostwriter was originally planned for the 2013 and 2016 versions, but the add-in became incompatible due to a dependency on Internet Explorer 11.
