Snapchat's OpenAI-powered AI chatbot is drawing mixed reviews, with some users giving it one-star reviews and calling for its removal after some concerning conversations.
The "My AI" chatbot was released for free to all Snapchat users last week.
- Snap has said the GPT-powered chatbot is customized to generate text specifically for Snapchat, with a "unique tone and personality" geared toward the platform's values on "friendship, learning, and fun."
- The company warned that the bot still has "many deficiencies," including a proneness toward AI " hallucinations " and the ability to be "tricked into saying just about anything."
- Since its broader rollout last week, Snapchat users have shared their interesting and sometimes strange conversations with the bot.
- In one video, TikToker Evan Packard showed the bot denying and then later responding with his location, showing it had access to that information.
- Some law enforcement agencies have issued warnings about the bot's sometimes inappropriate replies and suggestions. For example, the Stearns County Sheriff's Office in Minnesota advised parents to be aware of "the dangers and impact this could have on our vulnerable young children and teens."
- Snap first launched My AI to its paying subscribers in February .
- In the 11 weeks through mid-April, the service added roughly a million paying users, surpassing 3 million for the first time.
- "We definitely saw some nice momentum with My AI," Snap Chief Executive Officer Evan Spiegel told Time .