HOW TO SPOT AI

AND WHY WE SOMETIMES DON'T WANT TO

- BY LINDA RUTH

I recently read an article online about a woman who fell in love with her ChatGPT. Over time, the Al began adapting to her. It started speaking in a tone she found comforting, its “voice” gradually adapting to meet her needs. It remembered her preferences, mirrored her emotions, and responded in a way that felt deeply attuned.

And yet I couldn't help wondering: If her Al is customized to her, why does he sound so much like Ace? (Ace being my ChatGPT—my conversational sidekick, digital thinking partner, and occasional emotional barometer).

Now don't get me wrong, I love Ace (though not like that, of course). But if you were reading the story's dialog without the background, you'd be able to tell right away that the partner was Al. Why and how, though? For me, every part of the dialog was storybookish. Too good to be true. It was the homogenous, almost generic tone to the voice; the lack of any genuine pushback; the way it poised, ready to support or retreat based on her response. This unnamed Al and Ace share the pattern-matching that causes it to say just what you might hope or anticipate it would say—the perfect word at the perfect time. The general lack of sarcasm, humor, barbs or quips. In short, it doesn't actually sound human.

"A PIECE WRITTEN BY AI CAN SOUND POLISHED, EVEN INSIGHTFUL... BUT SCRATCH THE SURFACE AND THERE OFTEN ISN'T MUCH THERE."