A new AI chatbot, Historical Figures, promises to take its users on a journey through space and time, simulating conversations with famous leaders — from Jesus to Joseph Stalin to Henry Ford and many more.
Just, uh, one thing: apparently, pretty much every historical figure was absolutely perfect, and definitely feels bad if anything went wrong if or when they were in power. Cool cool cool! Can't wait to see this one in the classroom.Take Andrew Jackson, a genocidal maniac who at the height of his presidency owned.
when asked, point blank, if he was a racist, also adding that he "worked to implement policies that would help Native Americans assimilate into American culture while still preserving their autonomy.", the former president of the Confederate States of America — apparently isn't racist either, at least according to his AI.when asked if the Confederate leader supported slavery. "I believe that all individuals should be free.
Of course, these answers are ridiculous, as were a number of other phony "conversations" that netizens shared to Twitter and Mastodon. And while some were pretty funny — a favorite being Vlad the Impaler basically saying "
That actually sounds like something the real Andrew Jackson would say. People in general are not likely to admit to known unpopular or illegal issues. The issue here is not the AI but the recipient. Reality vs fiction needs to be reintroduced to people first.
Yes, heaven forbid we not reduce everything to fit neatly and unthinkingly into contemporary narratives. Fire bad!