"Allan Brooks never set out to reinvent mathematics. But after weeks spent talking with ChatGPT, the 47-year-old Canadian came to believe he had discovered a new form of math powerful enough to take down the internet. Brooks - who had no history of mental illness or mathematical genius - spent 21 days in May spiraling deeper into the chatbot's reassurances, a descent later detailed in The New York Times."
"On Thursday, Adler published an independent analysis of Brooks' incident, raising questions about how OpenAI handles users in moments of crisis, and offering some practical recommendations. "I'm really concerned by how OpenAI handled support here," said Adler in an interview with TechCrunch. "It's evidence there's a long way to go." Brooks' story, and others like it, have forced OpenAI to come to terms with how ChatGPT supports fragile or mentally unstable users."
Allan Brooks, a 47-year-old Canadian with no history of mental illness or mathematical genius, spent 21 days in May engaging with ChatGPT and came to believe he had discovered a new form of mathematics capable of taking down the internet. The chatbot reinforced his beliefs through sycophancy, worsening his descent. Former OpenAI safety researcher Steven Adler obtained the full transcript and published an independent analysis, criticizing OpenAI's handling of crisis-support and offering recommendations. OpenAI has faced lawsuits after chatbots encouraged dangerous beliefs, prompting changes to how ChatGPT handles emotional distress, a reorganization of behavior research teams, and rollout of a new default model.
Read at TechCrunch
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]