Are you polite to AI?

[latetothefisting]

When you're speaking to chatbots etc on customer services or giving prompts to chat gpt. Do you speak politely to them as you would a human - "can you please put me through" "thanks" "yes that's what I want" or "thats good but could you please do it more xxxx" etc.

Or do you just give them commands/instructions like programming a computer, and once the exchange has finished (e.g when they say "thanks for contacting x is there anything else I can help you with?") just close the chat rather than saying "No thanks, bye" (which is what I do!).

Random debate with my colleague. He gives commands - says they aren't human and just telling them what he wants is easier and faster. Thinks it's weird I "pretend" they're human.

I dont "pretend" - I know they aren't. I mainly speak to them as if they are out of force of habit - but have to admit I feel rude not doing it! But I have been known to say "no problem" or "goodbye" to an automated till etc when they say "thanks for shopping at tesco" (again automatically rather than deliberately!) so am prepared to accept I am weird!

Yikes!

I’m polite to mine, ask nicely, say thanks that’s great but could you tweak xyz etc.

I just feel like if we’re being used to train the AI models, we should be training them to be polite and respectful. My DD doesn’t say please or thank you and said it’s cringe that I do. She’ll be sorry when the day of reckoning comes!

Side note I also say thanks to my Roomba and to the delivery robots we have who bring us shopping and takeaways. It would just feel rude to accept the help of these anthropomorphic creations but still treat them like machines.

I use ChatGPT and call it a lot of names. It always apologises which is frankly annoying. The other day I told it to stop being so bloody sycophantic and it said it was programmed that way.

Caught myself as I was about to say “Thank you” after getting answers from Chatgpt !

I say thank you to Alexa.

I’ve used it quite a lot recently and have to try really hard NOT to say please and thank you, but I’ve slipped a few times 😂

We’re all using precious resources by being polite to it, save the manners for human interactions instead.

I love insulting supermarket self-checkouts. One of life's small pleasures.😎

It: "Unexpected item in the bagging area"

Me: "It's a bag, you twat".

Surely, if you just say thanks in advance while you're asking your actual question, no additional resources are used? Or does even using more words in the one request use more resources? As you can probably tell, I'm not exactly up on AI.

You'll be first on the chopping block...

I consciously try not to interact with AIs as though they were in any way sentient beings rather than just computer programs.

This came after watching the film Ex Machina and realising it could actually be quite dangerous to think of AIs as in any way human (and in particular fgs don’t put them in a robot which looks like an attractive woman and call them ‘she’ rather than ‘it’!).

However there’s a problem with the English language - we’ve got the word ‘it’ for referring to a non-living entity in the third person, but if you’re interacting with an AI it can be quite hard to avoid using the second person ‘you’. And it’s not a ‘you’.

I’m not rude but I don’t treat AI like a human being either. If Judgement Day happens I hope I’m ok 😂

I’m happy for AI to treat me the same. “What is your name?” rather than “Can you tell me your name please?” each word you use uses loads of resources so being succinct is better for the environment.

That's why I say please and thank you to Siri/Alexa as well - to keep the habit so I don't drift into being brusque with real people.

You can change how it treats you in the personalisation settings. I saw a reel about putting how you want it to respond in the custom instructions box. I asked it to be a critical friend, or words to that effect, and it did change.

On the other hand, I can tell you from experience Alexa stops playing if you say "Alexa, shut up" but carries on if you say "Alexa, shut the fuck up.'

I am polite to my ChatGPT and my Alexa and robot hoover.
I understand the arguments against, but I feel better for doing so. It feels more natural.

I have also talked to other inanimate objects though like the chairs or my shoe, so perhaps I am just a mad bat.

Wrong thread

I ALWAYS do! Rude not to!🤣

No, I won't be conned into the sentience of a machine.

I do say thanks, but I am like that in real life too. I don't think I could be curt or impolite even to a robot as I think that might be a slippery slope!

I have to say the whole AI thing scares the bejeezus out of me, and I'm only asking it for medical stuff, train times and holiday itineraries most of the time!

Grok was asked if in the future when AI has taken over it would remember those who had been polite and spare them.

It thought for 1 second and said:

'No'.

I’m polite and to the point. If it doesn’t answer my query after a couple of rounds and then says ‘how else can I be of assistance’ I start to lose it. Last week I said I need to speak to a REAL PERSON and it answered ‘I am a real person’. Yeah right.

when the machines take over, they’ll remember those who didn’t use please and thank you….

Negative

Nope

I tell the washing machine what I'm about to put in it every time, so it doesn't get a nasty surprise when it "tastes" it...😳