Got insincere flattery?

[firecat]

“But I had an epiphany. You know what all this sycophancy constantly being told you’re right, that you’re brilliant, that every decision is flawless? That sounds an awful lot like being a billionaire.”

[sic - perhaps the grammatical error is to show the writer is not an AI]

"The Secret Tool AI Uses to Seduce You: Explained," by Taya Graham and Stephen Janis

I use AI to get answers to simple questions and I hate when the bot addresses me personally. I hate it possibly to an irrational degree. (Even when someone else shares with me an AI convo they had, I get mad.) Do you use AI for anything and what do you think of this design choice?

Comments

[sabotabby]

Huh, maybe that's why I'm immune. If someone flatters me, or uses my name, I assume they're lying and trying to get something.

I want my tools to feel like tools—an extension of my brain and body. My toaster doesn't talk to me. I put bread in it and it comes out warmer and crispier. When my computer addresses me by name, I get a little spooked even though it's obviously programmed to know my name.

I don't knowingly use AI for anything. I know it's stuffed into some tools I use, like Google, and the result is that I avoid or double check answers when I'm using these tools. I think it's a full-on blight that is going to create a new Dark Ages if enough people don't flat-out refuse and keep their ability to think with their brains.