OpenAI and Sam Altman were scrambling yesterday amidst allegations that they'd used a Scarlett Johansson sound-alike in ChatGPT. The company's actions raise multiple concerns.
I've said this before on many occasions but humans interpret intelligence based on language. We interpret emotions based on language. We attribute sentience based on language and ChatGPT and other LLMs are.... sophisticated language models. Add in a sultry feminine voice with proper tone and inflection and humans are bound to hallucinate a capability, personality, cognizance and sentience well beyond the underlying stochastic parrot models.
I'm afraid your question about the appropriateness of using these new voice features to "create personal and romantic relationships with users" is answered NO by society but a resounding YES by edtech companies. Why? Well, the social media playbook worked well to grab and hold our attention. The new playbook will be to grab and hold our hearts and mind. The new way to create "stickiness" is to form human-like relationships with "bots". It seem inevitable unless there is some regulation against it. I'm afraid we will look back on social media as mild in comparison to what AI will do with bots.
I'm pretty sure they didn't clone Johansson's voice, but rather mimicked its essence -- which is why a lawsuit will be both challenging and interesting.
The film, as you say, provides a really interesting perspective! I'm not sure we'll either get to OS sentience any time soon, or a single instance that engages with many people simultaneously (although the latter is more feasible). But it does raise questions as to where we're actually heading ...
Plus, Her just underlines how stimulating sci fi movies can be when thinking about tech and the future!
I've said this before on many occasions but humans interpret intelligence based on language. We interpret emotions based on language. We attribute sentience based on language and ChatGPT and other LLMs are.... sophisticated language models. Add in a sultry feminine voice with proper tone and inflection and humans are bound to hallucinate a capability, personality, cognizance and sentience well beyond the underlying stochastic parrot models.
Yep!
I'm afraid your question about the appropriateness of using these new voice features to "create personal and romantic relationships with users" is answered NO by society but a resounding YES by edtech companies. Why? Well, the social media playbook worked well to grab and hold our attention. The new playbook will be to grab and hold our hearts and mind. The new way to create "stickiness" is to form human-like relationships with "bots". It seem inevitable unless there is some regulation against it. I'm afraid we will look back on social media as mild in comparison to what AI will do with bots.
Now you're scaring me!
I'm pretty sure they didn't clone Johansson's voice, but rather mimicked its essence -- which is why a lawsuit will be both challenging and interesting.
The film, as you say, provides a really interesting perspective! I'm not sure we'll either get to OS sentience any time soon, or a single instance that engages with many people simultaneously (although the latter is more feasible). But it does raise questions as to where we're actually heading ...
Plus, Her just underlines how stimulating sci fi movies can be when thinking about tech and the future!