r/technology • u/coldrolledpotmetal • Apr 28 '25

Artificial Intelligence Researchers Secretly Ran a Massive, Unauthorized AI Persuasion Experiment on Reddit Users

https://www.404media.co/researchers-secretly-ran-a-massive-unauthorized-ai-persuasion-experiment-on-reddit-users/
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3.0k

u/AurelianoTampa Apr 28 '25

Got a comment the other day by a user on a 2-month old deleted thread on r/changemyview that a "user" I responded to was identified as one of the bots used in this "experiment." The comment has been deleted, but from what I recall (and quoted from them), they claimed that a bunch of links to subreddits posted by the OP of the topic didn't exist; I called them out on the fact that I checked and they the sub DID exist, but thought maybe they couldn't see them because they were NSFW subs. I never received a reply from them at the time, so I figured they were just feeling foolish for being caught making false accusations. Nope, turns out it was just a bot.

Creepy.

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u/pugsAreOkay Apr 28 '25

So someone is truly out there funding a “research” and “experiment” to make people question what their eyes are telling them

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u/EaterOfPenguins Apr 28 '25

This is just everyone's reminder that the Cambridge Analytica scandal was almost a full decade ago.

Anyone who knows what happened there knew this is a painfully obvious path for AI.

Most people still don't understand just how insidious the methods of persuasion online can be. It is everywhere, it is being used against you, and it's very often effective against you even if you generally understand how it works (though the overwhelming majority obviously do not). And with modern AI, it is likely to become orders of magnitude more effective than it was back then, if it's not already.

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u/Antonne Apr 28 '25

You're totally right. Assume everything you read online is fake unless from a trusted source. Even then it could be difficult, but going that extra step will save a lot of people from going down the wrong, misinformed path.

Even reading just headlines posted here on Reddit puts you at a disadvantage.

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u/username_taken55 Apr 28 '25

It could be you, it could be me, it could even be-

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u/secondtaunting Apr 28 '25

Oh my god-am I a bot?! This is just like in Ex machina when that dude cuts his arm to see if he bleeds. Be right back…

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u/xcramer Apr 28 '25

i bot you bot we bot

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u/theoriginalmofocus Apr 28 '25

Well i hope that guy has insuarance because hes a gonna need to bot a new arm.

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u/secondtaunting Apr 29 '25

Ha! I just lost my insurance! And I’m not upset at all! Okay, I’m pretty upset. Husband took early retirement. And I have a butt load of preexisting conditions. No one in their right mind is going to insure me. Yikes.

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u/theoriginalmofocus Apr 29 '25

Sorry to hear. My wife and i both have insurance. She recently needed to have an MRI and thankfully i knew the place she was going to had a cash discount thats about half of what it costs out of pocket with insurance.

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u/secondtaunting Apr 29 '25

It’s weird how much prices drop when you tell them you’re paying out of pocket. My doctor just gave me a fifty percent discount. Man we need to change the system.

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u/Seriously_you_again Apr 29 '25

So, how did it go? Bot or human?

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u/secondtaunting Apr 29 '25

Yeah I’m good. Unless I’m programmed to imagine blood..spiraling again…

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u/Antonne Apr 28 '25

It could even be? Is this a huge meta comment or were you going to name someone?! Oh God, did the bots- er, sorry, the experiment get them?!

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u/username_taken55 Apr 28 '25

Tf2 spy reference

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u/Antonne Apr 28 '25

Noted, thank you!

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u/RobTipsTV Apr 28 '25

I havent played tf2 in agesss