How Upwork is Using AI ?
Upwork has enhanced its customer experience by introducing new features built on the latest OpenAI models. Through its AI incubator, Upwork Labs, the company began addressing major customer challenges, such as the complexity of creating effective job posts for intricate projects. This led to the development of the Job Post Generator, Upwork's first product powered by OpenAI. Utilizing GPT-3.5, this tool significantly simplifies job post creation, reducing the time required by 80%. Notably, clients who use the Job Post Generator spend 9% more on Upwork compared to those who don't.
Building on this success, Upwork introduced several innovative features that further enhance customer experiences by leveraging OpenAI, combined with Upwork’s vast marketplace data:
Upwork Chat Pro: This versatile work app, powered by GPT-4o and embedded within the Upwork platform, provides personalized assistance to freelancers. It helps them efficiently handle challenging and repetitive tasks, boosting productivity, earnings, and work quality.
Proposal Tips: This feature employs OpenAI’s models to assist freelancers in crafting unique and professional responses to job posts, thereby increasing their chances of securing projects.
Best Match Insights: Currently in beta, this feature uses GPT-3.5 to help clients find the most suitable freelancers by highlighting relevant skills and client reviews.
Recently, Upwork combined these and other features to introduce Uma™️, Upwork’s Mindful AI. Uma not only powers various platform features but also serves as an intelligent companion for clients and freelancers. By integrating Upwork’s data with OpenAI’s models, Uma has shown impressive results. New clients using an early version of Uma spent 7% more in their first month on Upwork than those who didn’t, leading to more opportunities and success for freelancers.
Dave Bottoms, General Manager of Upwork Marketplace, emphasized the company's commitment to staying at the forefront of the industry by adopting AI and other emerging technologies. He stated, “By leveraging AI, we empower our customers to achieve greater productivity and efficiency while producing higher-quality work outcomes. With OpenAI, we are delivering cutting-edge solutions that are driving significant advancements in how work gets done.”
Combating Fraud with GPT-4o
As AI capabilities expanded, so did the number of customer job posts on Upwork. With this surge, ensuring high-quality posts while screening for potential fraudulent activities became a priority. Traditionally, fraud reviews have been time-consuming and manual. To address this, Upwork introduced several internal process automations powered by OpenAI’s models. These automations efficiently identify low-quality and scam job posts, significantly improving the overall quality of the Upwork marketplace and enhancing the experience for freelancers.
Empowering Every Team Member with ChatGPT Enterprise
After thoroughly evaluating various AI tools, Upwork discovered that 98% of its team members preferred ChatGPT Enterprise for daily tasks, including specialized activities like coding and quality assurance. Consequently, Upwork now provides all its team members with access to ChatGPT Enterprise. This access has enabled team members to build custom GPTs that streamline repetitive tasks, generate sales scripts, analyze data sets, create customer experience (CX) macros, and optimize content for SEO. Additionally, Upwork is integrating OpenAI’s newly announced voice and desktop app features to embed AI even deeper into their workflows.
Unlocking New Opportunities for Freelancers on Upwork
It's not just Upwork’s team members who are benefiting from AI; freelancers on Upwork are also expanding their AI expertise. Upwork has created the "OpenAI Experts on Upwork" resource, which connects OpenAI customers and businesses with independent professionals skilled in OpenAI technologies. Featured on Upwork's AI Services hub, this resource offers a direct connection to experts who can assist in deploying AI solutions.
Streamlining Operations with an AI-First Approach
ChatGPT Enterprise's wide range of capabilities has allowed Upwork to reduce the need for multiple software services. “When evaluating new AI software, we’ve started asking, ‘Can OpenAI handle this?’,” says Farahmand. “In several cases, we’ve found that ChatGPT can address the issue without requiring another application.”
Looking Ahead: The Future of AI at Upwork
Upwork envisions AI playing an increasingly pivotal role on its platform. “We plan to not only continue integrating AI into Upwork to enhance the customer experience but, more importantly, to rethink features from the ground up and broaden our offerings,” says Matt Jaffe, Head of Product for Core Experiences at Upwork and founder of Upwork Labs. Jaffe believes the potential of AI is limitless. “We see tremendous opportunities ahead as we continue to fulfill our mission to help people get work done better, faster, and more efficiently on Upwork than anywhere else.”
