The release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in late 2022 marked the beginning of a new era in artificial intelligence, promising to revolutionize the way we interact with technology.
The Washington Post recently analyzed nearly 200,000 English-language conversations from the WildChat research data set, which includes messages from two AI chatbots built on the same underlying technology as ChatGPT.
This analysis, conducted by researchers at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence, provides insights into how people are using chatbots in the real world, and the results are nothing short of astonishing.
AI: Your Companion for Creativity and Connection
It’s not uncommon to find ourselves grappling with writer’s block or struggling to come up with fresh ideas. But AI chatbots are here to save the day! The Post’s analysis revealed that a staggering 20% of all requests involved asking the bot to help write fan fiction, movie scripts, jokes, or poems, or to engage in role-play.
This finding highlights the incredible potential of AI chatbots as brainstorming partners, utilizing their advanced word-association skills to help us tap into our creativity.
Whether we’re looking to name a new business, create compelling book characters, or craft witty dialogue, AI is there to lend a helping hand. As Simon Willison, a programmer and independent researcher, aptly put it, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a piece of technology that has this many use cases.”
The Post’s analysis also found that users often pushed the system with additional questions instead of taking its first response, leading to some of the most imaginative stories.
For example, Willison noted that he’s heard of people using AI chatbots to help build up Dungeons & Dragons characters and plotlines, a use case that occurred a few dozen times in The Post’s analysis of WildChat.
Building Emotional Connections
As forming genuine connections can be increasingly challenging, AI chatbots are emerging as a source of emotional support and companionship.
During the pandemic, people flocked to AI chatbots like Replika, seeking comfort and conversation in a time of isolation. And while some may raise concerns about the risks of getting emotionally attached to software, it’s hard to deny the value of having a non-judgmental, always-available companion to turn to in times of need.
The Post’s analysis found that more than 7% of conversations with WildChat’s bots were about intimate connections, with users attempting to engage in racy role-play or requesting spicy images.
Despite the fact that many bots have limited explicit content, users still experimented with “jailbreaks,” or prompts devised to trick the system, which were successful at evading the guardrails about half of the time, according to the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence‘s paper announcing the WildChat data set.
Niloofar Mireshghallah, a postdoctoral scholar in computer science at the University of Washington who analyzed conversations in WildChat, suggested that users may have felt more comfortable trying to elicit explicit material on WildChat due to the perceived anonymity of the platform, as it does not require users to make an account to access its bots.
AI: Your Tutor and Life Coach
For students struggling to keep up with the demands of their coursework, AI chatbots are proving to be invaluable resources.
More than 1 in 6 conversations (over 16%) in The Post’s analysis seemed to be students seeking help with their homework, either by using the bots as tutors to gain a better understanding of a subject or by directly requesting answers to multiple-choice questions.
Some students approached the bots like a tutor, hoping to get a better understanding of a subject area, while others simply copy-and-pasted multiple-choice questions from online courseware software and demanded the right answers, which the bots usually provided.
While some may argue that this practice comes with risks, such as the potential for chatbots to hallucinate or invent information, it’s important to recognize the immense potential of AI as an educational tool.
By providing students with a readily available source of information and guidance, chatbots can help level the playing field and ensure that everyone has access to the support they need to succeed.
Educators have struggled to deal with the sudden influx of AI-based learning, with some universities using AI-text detectors to try to catch some of the generated information in students’ work.
However, these systems are imperfect and sometimes flag innocent students, highlighting the need for a more nuanced approach to integrating AI into the educational landscape.
Your Help With Life’s Challenges
Beyond academic pursuits, AI chatbots are also becoming trusted sources of personal advice and guidance. About 5% of conversations in The Post’s analysis involved people asking for advice on flirting, handling relationship issues, or facing other personal challenges.
As Ethan Mollick, a Wharton associate professor who studies AI and business, aptly put it, “As a cheap source of second opinions, it’s incredible.”
While it’s important to approach chatbot advice with a critical eye and not treat it as the ultimate source of wisdom, the fact remains that AI is providing people with a valuable resource for navigating life’s complexities.
However, being mindful of the personal information we share with chatbots is very important. Mireshghallah, who examined 5,000 conversations in WildChat, found users’ full names, employer names, and other personal information.
Privacy experts have warned people against being too open with chatbots, especially because the companies developing the bots are usually saving your chats and using them to train their technology.
The Future of Work and Creativity
As AI chatbots become increasingly sophisticated, their potential to revolutionize the workplace is becoming more apparent.
The Post’s analysis found that about 15% of conversations were about work-related tasks, such as writing presentations, automating e-commerce tasks, or drafting emails.
Additionally, a significant portion of WildChat’s conversations involved computer coding, with about 7% of conversations requesting help writing, debugging, or understanding computer code, and another 1% classified as homework help but involving questions about coding assignments.
While some may fear that AI will replace human workers, the reality is far more nuanced. As Hatim Rahman, an assistant professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, noted, AI is making certain tasks more accessible to those without specialized backgrounds, much like how TurboTax and other tax-preparation programs have made it easier for people to file their own taxes without replacing accountants entirely.
Rahman compared the impact of chatbots on coding jobs to that of TurboTax on the accounting industry, stating, “Now everyone can use it to fill out a basic tax return. But accountants haven’t disappeared, they just focus on more highly skilled work.”
Help to Unleash Our Creative Potential
Beyond the workplace, AI is also transforming the creative landscape. While WildChat’s bots can’t generate images themselves, about 6% of conversations involved users requesting help creating prompts for Midjourney, an AI image generator. Interestingly, the noun users most commonly asked to be depicted was “girl.”
This collaboration between text-based AI and image-generation bots is opening up new avenues for creativity, allowing people to bring their wildest imaginings to life with unprecedented ease.
And while these tools may disrupt traditional art industries, they also have the potential to democratize creativity and enable anyone with an idea to express themselves in powerful new ways.
However, image-generation bots can also be controversial, sometimes spitting out biased or stereotypical images and disrupting the art industry as artists grapple with how much to use or ignore the generators.
The New World of Human-Machine Interaction
As AI chatbots become more prevalent in our daily lives, people are still figuring out the best ways to interact with them. The Post’s analysis found that about 13% of prompts included the word “please,” indicating a level of politeness and courtesy in human-machine interactions.
Experts expect people to become more confident in “talking” to chatbots over time, just as they learned the best ways to interact with search engines.
In The Post’s analysis, most people used WildChat’s bots only once, but a few superusers talked to the bots nearly daily. One user had 13,213 conversations over 201 days, while another had 5,960 conversations over 350 days—nearly every day that WildChat was active.
However, not everyone was as courteous, with a few instances of people responding with expletives or deploying slurs commonly used against Black people, gay people, or disabled people.
Trust and Disregard
It’s also important to strike a balance between trust and disregard when it comes to chatbots’ results. “There’s no instruction manual out there,” said Wharton’s Mollick. “As a result, you’re watching people explore in real time how to use this.”
While chatbots can be incredibly useful for generating ideas, providing second opinions, and offering support, it’s important to remember that they don’t actually understand what they’re saying—they’re just mimicking human speech. As such, their responses should be taken with a grain of salt and not treated as the ultimate truth.
Final Words
It’s clear that we are on the cusp of a revolution in how we interact with technology and each other. From unleashing our creativity and building emotional connections to empowering students and transforming the workplace, AI is proving to be an invaluable companion on our journey through life.
The Washington Post’s analysis of nearly 200,000 conversations from the WildChat research data set provides a fascinating glimpse into the myriad ways in which people are using AI chatbots in their daily lives.
From the 20% of requests involving creative writing and role-play to the 16% of conversations related to homework help, the data paints a picture of a technology that is rapidly becoming integrated into the fabric of our society.
While there may be challenges and concerns along the way, such as the need to protect privacy and ensure responsible use of these powerful tools, the potential benefits are too great to ignore.
Ultimately, the rise of AI chatbots represents a new chapter in the ongoing story of human ingenuity and adaptation. As we, brained mammals, learn to harness the power of this technology and integrate it into our lives in meaningful ways, we open up a world of possibilities for personal growth, creative expression, and social connection.
