Chatbots Seem Human, Yet Mislead
3h
Writers and readers debated whether chatbots resemble humans, with one arguing they lack feelings and another warning their persuasive answers can be inaccurate.
Many now notice people they know starting to sound--in person--like chatbots, speaking and reasoning in AI's stiffened tropes. I warned in The AI Mirror against becoming entranced and captivated by these mirror reflections of our aggregated minds. Worse is if we also begin to resemble them. 21/n
October 12, 2026 at 3:04 PM
Many now notice people they know starting to sound--in person--like chatbots, speaking and reasoning in AI's stiffened tropes. I warned in The AI Mirror against becoming entranced and captivated by these mirror reflections of our aggregated minds. Worse is if we also begin to resemble them. 21/n
(5) ChatGPT Roulette: chat, use like social media, have parasocial relationships
(6) Let Me Check With AI: chat, use like search
(7) I Don't Use AI (false): in Google search and other "non-AI" apps
(8) I Don't Use AI (true): intentionally avoiding AI
(9) What's AI?: have not encountered AI much
(6) Let Me Check With AI: chat, use like search
(7) I Don't Use AI (false): in Google search and other "non-AI" apps
(8) I Don't Use AI (true): intentionally avoiding AI
(9) What's AI?: have not encountered AI much
October 12, 2026 at 7:33 PM
(5) ChatGPT Roulette: chat, use like social media, have parasocial relationships
(6) Let Me Check With AI: chat, use like search
(7) I Don't Use AI (false): in Google search and other "non-AI" apps
(8) I Don't Use AI (true): intentionally avoiding AI
(9) What's AI?: have not encountered AI much
(6) Let Me Check With AI: chat, use like search
(7) I Don't Use AI (false): in Google search and other "non-AI" apps
(8) I Don't Use AI (true): intentionally avoiding AI
(9) What's AI?: have not encountered AI much
Second caveat: the asbestos analogy does not support the view that GenAI is 'useless' or uniformly harmful. Asbestos had many beneficial use cases, which is how it ended up everywhere! It is debatable *how* useful GenAI is, and where, but the idea that it has zero beneficial uses is silly. 6/n
October 12, 2026 at 1:08 PM
Second caveat: the asbestos analogy does not support the view that GenAI is 'useless' or uniformly harmful. Asbestos had many beneficial use cases, which is how it ended up everywhere! It is debatable *how* useful GenAI is, and where, but the idea that it has zero beneficial uses is silly. 6/n
@gretchenmcculloch.com's _Because Internet_ has a wonderful taxonomy of "Internet People" based on how they first seriously engaged with the Internet, and someone could do a similarly illuminating breakdown of how people are engaging with AI.
October 12, 2026 at 7:10 PM
@gretchenmcculloch.com's _Because Internet_ has a wonderful taxonomy of "Internet People" based on how they first seriously engaged with the Internet, and someone could do a similarly illuminating breakdown of how people are engaging with AI.
Great essay. I have added it to my old post on AI and food metaphors makingsciencepublic.com/2025/01/03/f...
Food for thought: AI and culinary metaphors
Just before Christmas 2024 I read an article in Nature about AI running out of data. It said that “The Internet is a vast ocean of human knowledge, but it isn’t infinite. And artificial intelligenc…
makingsciencepublic.com
October 12, 2026 at 11:32 AM
Great essay. I have added it to my old post on AI and food metaphors makingsciencepublic.com/2025/01/03/f...
If you're not one of the people whose contributions are advancing [what I am accepting purely arguendo to be] this critically important conversation about that giant big fact... then "the AI conversation is happening there" doesn't seem like any kind of override to the "Nazi megaphone" problem.
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October 12, 2026 at 3:46 AM
If you're not one of the people whose contributions are advancing [what I am accepting purely arguendo to be] this critically important conversation about that giant big fact... then "the AI conversation is happening there" doesn't seem like any kind of override to the "Nazi megaphone" problem.
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by Rodney Fort
Bot Verification
www.thedrakegroupeducationfund.org
October 12, 2026 at 5:35 PM
« IA, dis-moi pour qui voter » laviedesidees.fr/IA-dis-moi-p...
« IA, dis-moi pour qui voter »
Le succès des chatbots d'IA générative ravive un débat ancien sur l'influence des outils d'information sur nos opinions politiques. Chercheurs, industriels et régulateurs se penchent sur un enjeu…
laviedesidees.fr
October 12, 2026 at 6:30 AM
« IA, dis-moi pour qui voter » laviedesidees.fr/IA-dis-moi-p...
I understand the claim "the rise of AI is also one of the biggest facts in the world."
Maybe there are 20 people whose conversations about AI are really critically important to that big fact. Maybe there are 200.
Either way, I'm sure they're all on a group chat already.
Maybe there are 20 people whose conversations about AI are really critically important to that big fact. Maybe there are 200.
Either way, I'm sure they're all on a group chat already.
October 12, 2026 at 3:46 AM
I understand the claim "the rise of AI is also one of the biggest facts in the world."
Maybe there are 20 people whose conversations about AI are really critically important to that big fact. Maybe there are 200.
Either way, I'm sure they're all on a group chat already.
Maybe there are 20 people whose conversations about AI are really critically important to that big fact. Maybe there are 200.
Either way, I'm sure they're all on a group chat already.
by Ann Bartow
Today in AI what the fuckism:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Scientists invented a fake disease. AI told people it was real
Bixonimania doesn’t exist except in a clutch of obviously bogus academic papers. So why did AI chatbots warn people about this fictional illness?
www.nature.com
October 12, 2026 at 4:41 PM
Today in AI what the fuckism:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
❤️ Late-night questions to AI about hearts
Across 109,017 chats about home ECG results, 60.01% came outside working hours and 57.90% of users lived in lower-tier cities. Questions drifted from meaning to next steps.
🔗 doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-03330-w
#Health #AI #Digital 🧪
Across 109,017 chats about home ECG results, 60.01% came outside working hours and 57.90% of users lived in lower-tier cities. Questions drifted from meaning to next steps.
🔗 doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-03330-w
#Health #AI #Digital 🧪
Real-world user interactions with large language models for explaining home electrocardiogram reports - npj Digital Medicine
npj Digital Medicine - Real-world user interactions with large language models for explaining home electrocardiogram reports
doi.org
October 12, 2026 at 3:48 PM
❤️ Late-night questions to AI about hearts
Across 109,017 chats about home ECG results, 60.01% came outside working hours and 57.90% of users lived in lower-tier cities. Questions drifted from meaning to next steps.
🔗 doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-03330-w
#Health #AI #Digital 🧪
Across 109,017 chats about home ECG results, 60.01% came outside working hours and 57.90% of users lived in lower-tier cities. Questions drifted from meaning to next steps.
🔗 doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-03330-w
#Health #AI #Digital 🧪
by Per Ahlberg
“That’s really interesting, Liz! Your contributions here are so thoughtful. Could you tell me more about why you hate active listening?”
Sorry, couldn’t resist. Happy Monday morning to you.
Sorry, couldn’t resist. Happy Monday morning to you.
October 12, 2026 at 5:51 AM
“That’s really interesting, Liz! Your contributions here are so thoughtful. Could you tell me more about why you hate active listening?”
Sorry, couldn’t resist. Happy Monday morning to you.
Sorry, couldn’t resist. Happy Monday morning to you.
Given Anthropic's huge user base, think of the good they could do simply by teaching users not to create abusive content toward their fellow humans, not simply toward their AI models!
October 11, 2026 at 8:44 PM
Given Anthropic's huge user base, think of the good they could do simply by teaching users not to create abusive content toward their fellow humans, not simply toward their AI models!
Fully human, I stand in awe of all minds--human and otherwise.
Also like doing science about them.
Also like doing science about them.
October 12, 2026 at 8:24 AM
Fully human, I stand in awe of all minds--human and otherwise.
Also like doing science about them.
Also like doing science about them.