I built a website using ChatGPT. How does an AI-built website compare to human-built websites?

We live at the dawn of the AI age. There is much exploration and experimentation right now. It is a time of great excitement and fear in equal measure. I am beginning to understand that it will not be long before building websites is taken over by 'The Machines'. How close is that day? I want to find out.

I recently ran a test using the B12.io Website Generator GPT. It runs using ChatGPT and can quickly create a website from a few text prompts. In this article, I will talk you through the experience and give my view on how close AI is to replacing humans in Web Development.

Very. ChatGPT can create a website in minutes. What's more, the website is pretty good. The process is simple. You have four options to choose from.

I chose to 'create a launch-ready website'. I provided details of my business, expertise and personal story. Within a few minutes, I had a website for my freelance business.

To be clear, when I say high-quality website, I am talking about the level of websites that elite Web Designers and Developers build. Look at awwwards.com or siteinspire.com to see what I am talking about. Can ChatGPT make websites of that quality? No, it can't.

That said, it does not make bad websites. It makes rudimentary ones. Essentially, it makes a minimum viable website. It makes websites for people who need something quick, easy and cheap.

I don't want to be too critical. You can make a decent website with it. All the basic features you would need come with it. For me, it had a description of my services, a booking form, and SEO performance optimisation. It has everything I would need to launch a website.

So, does it make high-quality websites? No. Does it make okay websites? Yes.

For those interested, here is a side-by-side comparison of my two websites. On the left is the ChatGPT-generated website. On the right is my website, designed and built by a human - Me.

Fundamentally, the process is the same.

It starts with a discovery conversation. For ChatGPT, the discovery conversation is somewhat superficial. Where I would ask about the history of a business, its goals and the personal story of the founder, ChatGPT asks for 'the business name and a brief description'. In my experience, the more time spent on discovery, the more bespoke the website design becomes. In ChatGPT's case, bespoke is not the goal. Speed is the goal.

Following the discovery phase, we move into design. In this phase, I use the findings from the discovery conversations to create a website design that perfectly fits the website's function and brand. I then work with my client to revise and refine the design until we are all happy. ChatGPT follows a similar process but sped up. It takes your business description and generates the website content to embed in a template. You can then customise the design using the options it provides for the colour scheme, font pairings and images.

After designing the website, I start building it. I write the website code from scratch as my projects often include highly bespoke elements. In ChatGPT's case, it combines the design and development phases. This pattern is similar to most DIY website builders that use customisable templates as their foundation. My development phase differs from ChatGPT's as I create bespoke websites, while ChatGPT utilises reusable templates. My development requires a lot of testing before deployment, where ChatGPT's template code gets tested ahead of time.

Finally, we reach deployment. B12.io's Website Generator hosts the website on their platform. The templates are designed to lock you into their platform and are not exportable elsewhere. In my case, I build websites for the hosting requirements defined in the discovery phase. Different businesses and websites require different setups. As with every phase, I offer bespoke deployment options that create the best outcome for the client and their business.

AI makes everything much quicker and easier. It lowers the technical knowledge threshold. It enables everyone to create their own website without expert help.

You don't need to use ChatGPT. You can use other platforms like Wix and Elementor that utilise similar text-to-website features. In many cases, those platforms do it better than ChatGPT and provide more customisation options after building the website.

Fundamentally, AI makes building a website FAST. You can make a decent website in minutes. AI makes building a website CHEAP. Your website gets built in minutes, for free!

The speed and cost-effective nature of AI websites make them very attractive to businesses and startups with limited cash available. For organisations with a stronger brand and more money, I would continue to use humans for now.

It won't be long until AI-built websites are of similar quality to human-built ones. Until then, if you are looking for a more bespoke website built around your specific brand and needs, stick with humans (like me).