Newegg, one of the preferred online retailers for purchasing PC components, has decided to integrate ChatGPT into several online functions. Not only is ChatGPT being used to optimize the company's customer service chatbot and search, but also as an official AI PC building tool.

I was prepared to retract my position here that important PC building questions should not be left to AI (opens in new tab).

According to the press release (opens in new tab), the new AI PC Build Generator "helps customers discover compatible parts and build desktop PC systems to their preferred specifications and budget."

Well, we thought. Let's give it a try. It seems our job as technology journalists has turned to examining the possibility of artificial intelligence taking over that job. So is Newegg's AI PC builder tool about to consign us to oblivion?

Already we are off to a bad start with the PC Build website.

It suggests that "entry level" gaming PC builds should be under $1,500. It is true that you can currently get an entry-level gaming PC for under $1,000. Of course, if you only intend to play next-generation games with ray tracing on full blast, at 4K, and all graphics settings set to ultra, $1,500 is not going to cut it right now. This is partly due to the fact that we are already in a somewhat transitional period after the simultaneous release of GPUs and CPUs in early 2023, but things have already settled down.

But in short, if you just want to play "entry-level" games like Stardew Valley (opens in new tab) or The Sims 4 (opens in new tab) on a 1080p monitor, a cheap $500-$800 gaming PC (opens in new The bottom line is that an inexpensive $500 to $800 gaming PC (opens in new tab) will suffice.

And these are pre-assembled prices! There's no reason you can't source all the components and assemble them a bit cheaper.

But Newegg's ChatGPT integration has other ideas.

They propose building a monster $1,511 PC with a previous generation Nvidia RTX 3070 (open in new tab) and AMD Ryzen 5 5600X (open in new tab) CPU to play The Sims (they do not specify which Sims). This parts list (opens in new tab) includes an AIO cooler, which is needed to run this CPU, but is overkill for this application.

I have been happily playing "The Sims 4" for the past three years on a gaming PC with an RTX 2070 Ti (opens in new tab) and a 10th generation Core i5 Intel CPU and have never been disappointed.

Furthermore, my boss decided to ask AI to build a PC that would rival the PS5 for the same price. The result... It was overpriced.

I'm afraid to ask what specs are needed to play the original "Doom". I am well aware that "Doom" runs on literal potatoes (open in new tab). I'm genuinely starting to worry about people building their first PC in the age of AI.

I admit that it is currently in beta, but I can't imagine that they will start offering cheaper alternatives. That would be unwise business, wouldn't it?

If you're going to give this a try, take the suggestion with a grain of salt: if you're thinking about building your own PC, but are concerned about the price jumped up by AI, check out our cheap PC homebrew guide (opens in a new tab) instead.