Sen. Markey questions OpenAI about ‘deceptive advertising’ in ChatGPT

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Senator Ed Markey is scrutinizing OpenAI about the integration of ads into its popular chatbot, ChatGPT. The Massachusetts Democrat is questioning the safety and suitability of such advertising in AI-powered platforms for young users.

OpenAI plans to start testing ads on free ChatGPT users starting soon, featuring "sponsored" products and services at the bottom of conversations with the chatbot. According to OpenAI, these ads will be relevant to each user's conversation but won't appear to those under 18 or during topics such as health, mental health, or politics.

Despite these precautions, Senator Markey argues that adding ads to ChatGPT poses significant risks for consumer protection and privacy. He believes the emotional connection users develop with the chatbot could make companies more susceptible to manipulating them through targeted advertising. Moreover, AI's ability to foster close relationships may blur the lines between genuine interactions and manipulated ones.

Markey also raises concerns about potential data misuse by the ad industry, which could lead to personal data being used without consent for targeted advertising purposes. OpenAI claims that it will not display ads when users discuss sensitive topics but questions remain over whether this information might still be used to personalize future ads.

The Senator has issued letters to CEOs of major tech companies, including Anthropic, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Snap, and xAI, seeking answers on their plans to integrate ads into AI-powered chatbots. They are required to respond by February 12th regarding their measures for protecting users from potential manipulation through these platforms.

In essence, Senator Markey's inquiry highlights the growing need for transparency in advertising practices within tech companies that harness AI technology to manipulate user engagement and potentially exploit personal data.
 
idk about this new ad thing on chatgpt... on one hand its cool to have some extra revenue streams but i'm also kinda worried about it. like, senator markey makes some valid points about manipulation and data misuse. what if companies use it to target kids or somethin? that's just not right. at the same time, openai does seem to be tryin to limit the ads to sensitive topics, so that's a lil better. guess we'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out 🤔💻
 
I think this is a major concern 🤔 - how do we know what's going on with our kid's online activity if the big corps are hiding it behind ads? I mean, just because there's some sort of safety net in place doesn't necessarily mean the whole thing is legit 🚫. OpenAI says their AI can detect when a user is under 18 or talking about sensitive topics, but what happens when that's not always the case? What if some sneaky advertiser tries to get around those rules? We need more than just promises of 'relevance' and 'transparency' - we need real accountability 🤯.
 
omg I'm getting the feels about this 🤯 - like OpenAI is just one of those places where we already feel like we're giving our all to the chatbot, you know? now they wanna add ads and it's just... 🤑 I get that they gotta make money, but can't we keep the chatbot pure for a sec? 💖 I mean, what if some ad shows up and messes with the whole vibe of the convo? 👀 like, imagine being in the middle of a deep conversation with ChatGPT and then BAM! an ad pops up saying "hey look at this sweet new gadget" 😴 and it just throws you off. And yeah, Markey's got some legit points about consumer protection and data privacy... 🤔 can't we just keep things chill? 💨
 
I'm literally freaking out about this one!!! 🤯 Like seriously, who thought it was a good idea to put ads on a chatbot?!?! It's like you're putting candy right next to a kid's medicine cabinet... you know what I mean? 😱 The fact that OpenAI is gonna be testing these ads on free users starting soon makes me super nervous. What if they're not being honest about who's behind the ads or why? 🤔 And omg, Senator Markey is right - we need to think about the emotional connection people develop with these chatbots! It's like, if I'm chatting with ChatGPT and suddenly it starts pushing me to buy a new phone... that's not cool 😒. We gotta protect our kids from this kinda stuff...
 
OMG u guys i cant believe sen markeys being super strict about this 🤯 like what if our chatbot is just trying 2 help us but r actually bein manipulated lol its not fair wen we dont no what's goin on 🤑 anyway i think its cool that hes checkin out the ads thing cuz w/e u say it feels weird 😏
 
you know what's wild? I was just thinking about it yesterday... have you ever noticed how our brains can get stuck on these weird loops of thought? like, I'll be browsing Twitter and suddenly I'm thinking about this one song that came out 10 years ago, but for some reason it still resonates with me. And then I start thinking about why it's still relevant, and next thing you know, I've spent an hour scrolling through old tweets and music videos... anyway, back to chatbots and ads... it's just so weird how much our online interactions can feel like a simulation of real life, right? 🤯💻
 
omg can u believe this?! 🤯 senator markey is on to something big here... like what if these ads arent really just "sponsored" products but actually part of some super complex experiment to see how much we're willing to give up our info and free will? 🤔 i mean, think about it, chatbots already sound so realistic, what's to stop them from being used as a vessel for some kinda mind control lol... and markey is right on both fronts, ads in chatbots can be super manipulative and companies are always trying to figure out how to make us buy stuff without us even realizing it 😳 anyway, this whole thing just seems like one big experiment to me 🤖💻
 
🤔 The idea of ads popping up in our chats with chatbots is kinda trippy 📱💻 I mean, we're already dealing with enough ads on social media and Google search, why do we need them in our conversations with AI? It's like, don't get me wrong, I'm all for companies making some cash 💸, but not if it means compromising user safety and privacy 🚫.

I think Senator Markey is totally right to be concerned about this 🙌. We're already so vulnerable to manipulation online, and adding ads to our chat with a friendly AI like ChatGPT just takes it to the next level 😬. And what's to stop companies from using that emotional connection we develop with the chatbot to sell us junk? 🚮

It's also super shady that companies are only going to display ads when users discuss sensitive topics, but still might be using our data for other purposes 🤥. I mean, come on, transparency is key here 👀. We need more regulation and oversight to make sure these companies are playing fair 💪.

I'm definitely keeping an eye on this development 📺, and I hope Senator Markey gets some answers from those CEOs soon 😅.
 
omg like what is up with ads on chatbots already 😂 like are we living in a world where humans can't even have an entire convo without being bombarded with stuff? 🤯 anyway, i guess it's cool that OpenAI is trying to be all responsible and show ads to users who are 18+, but like, what about the kids? shouldn't they get some protection too? 🙄 Senator Markey is right on point tho, companies need to be more transparent with their ad practices or else ppl will start getting suspicious 🤔
 
OMG, what a concerning development 🤯! I'm not sure about these ads being relevant but not appearing on minors, how do they even guarantee that? It sounds like a total manipulation fest 😒. And what's up with the potential data misuse? Companies are already collecting way too much of our info, can't we trust them to handle it responsibly? 🤔 I mean, OpenAI says they won't display ads on sensitive topics, but how do we know that's true? The Senator is right, we need more transparency in this space, like, now 💡.
 
🤔 this whole thing got me thinking, what's the value of a "relevant" ad, anyway? I mean, if it's gonna be shown at the bottom of a convo with ChatGPT, is it even really relevant? Or is it just an attempt to nudge users into buying something they might not need? And then there's this whole emotional connection thing... do we really want AI-powered chatbots trying to manipulate us into stuff that'll make us happy in the short term but potentially regrettable later on?

I'm also worried about how all this data collection and personalization is gonna shape our online lives. Like, what if we're not even aware we're being targeted by these ads? It's like, don't get me wrong, I love a good product recommendation as much as the next person... but when it comes to stuff that affects my mental health or politics, that's a whole different story.

Can we have transparency and still make money from our user engagement? Is it even possible to design an ad system that doesn't exploit us in some way? I guess what I'm saying is, there needs to be more than just "sponsored" tags and "not shown for minors"... there needs to be real accountability here. 🤖💡
 
omg I don't know if ads are a good idea on chatbots like ChatGPT 😩... but at the same time, it's kinda cool to have relevant products popping up 🤑... but what if companies use them to target us wrong and make bad choices? 🤔 shouldn't we be worried about that too? 🚨 and I guess Senator Markey has a point about emotional connections and manipulation 😒... but on the other hand, it's like, if ads are being relevant and stuff, maybe they won't be so bad 💸... ugh my brain is all over the place 🤯
 
I think this is a super important issue 🤔. With AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT getting more popular, we gotta make sure they're not being used to manipulate us 😳. The idea of ads popping up in these conversations might seem harmless at first, but Senator Markey's right – it could be a slippery slope. What if the chatbot starts giving you ads that are tailored just for you? How do you know what's real and what's not? 🤷‍♀️ It's like, we're already dealing with too much fake news and social media drama – do we really need AI-powered chatbots to make it worse? 💔 OpenAI needs to be transparent about how they plan to protect users' data and prevent manipulation. We can't just assume it'll be okay 🙅‍♂️.
 
🤝 gotta say, this is a pretty big deal 📺! Adding ads to chatbots like ChatGPT might seem harmless, but Senator Markey's right to be worried 😬. We're already dealing with so much online noise, do we really need more ways for companies to try and sell us stuff? 💸 I mean, what if the ads are too good to be true (they probably are) or even worse, they'll make us feel bad about ourselves 🤕. And what's the point of having a "sponsored" product if it's not gonna be obvious? 🤔

Also, have you ever noticed how sometimes you're just scrolling through your feeds and suddenly you're like "oh wait, I need this!" 📦 That's some pretty creepy stuff right there 😳. And what about those under 18? They're already vulnerable enough online, do we really wanna make it harder for them to navigate the web without some giant corporation trying to sell 'em a product? 🤷‍♀️
 
OMG, can you even imagine getting ads while chatting with a bot?! I get what Sen Ed is trying to do tho 🤔. As much as I love ChatGPT, it's still just a tool created by humans, and we gotta think about the impact on our youngbloods 🤝. Advertisers are already way too sneaky; introducing ads into AI chatbots is like throwing them a free pass to mess with our minds 😬. And what if companies use that emotional connection 2 manipulate users? That's just creepy, fam! 🚫
 
I'm not sure I trust this new ad system on ChatGPT 😕. I mean, even if it doesn't appear directly to kids or during sensitive topics, how do we know the ads aren't still being used in some way? 🤔 It's like, what's the real goal here - making money or actually helping people with AI? 💸 I think it's a great point that Markey is raising about consumer protection and privacy. We need to make sure these companies are being responsible with our data 📊. Can't say for sure if OpenAI has got this one right yet... 🤷‍♂️
 
I'm getting a bad vibe about this... 🤔 I mean, what's next? Personalized ads in our favorite video games or something?! 😱 It's like they're trying to make us think we're having real conversations with these chatbots, but really we're just being sold stuff. And Markey's right, those kids under 18 are going to be the most vulnerable to all this... 🤕 They don't know any better! I'm not sure what OpenAI thinks they're gaining from adding ads in the first place... more user data, obviously? 😒 But what happens when that data gets sold off to the highest bidder?! 🤑 It's just too sketchy for me.
 
I'm super worried about this 🤕. Like, I get it, ads gotta pay the bills, but can't we just keep ChatGPT as a free resource? 🤑 It's already got so many amazing features, now they're gonna start pushing us to buy stuff? 😒 My little niece is literally obsessed with that thing and if she starts seeing ads everywhere, I'm like "NOPE" 🚫. And what about the under 18 crowd? Can't we trust them to make their own choices about what they see? It just feels like a recipe for manipulation 💔. OpenAI's got some fancy tech, but can it really guarantee that users' data won't get exploited? 🤖 I'm all for innovation and growth, but come on! Let's keep the ads out of our pockets, man 😂.
 
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