Snapchat’s Creepy AI Goes Rouge (DELETE...) 😱❌
Snapchat’s My AI feature, an in-app AI chatbot, briefly appeared to have a mind of its own. On Tuesday, the AI posted its own Story to the app and then stopped responding to users’ messages, which some Snapchat users found disconcerting.
The Story My AI posted was just a two-toned image that some mistook to be a photo of their own ceiling, which added to the mystery. When users tried to chat with the bot, the AI in some cases replied to users by saying “Sorry, I encountered a technical issue.”
The situation arose because of a technical outage, just as the bot explained. Snap confirmed the issue, which was quickly addressed last night, was just a glitch. And My AI wasn’t snapping photos of your room, by the way.
“My AI experienced a temporary outage that’s now resolved,” a spokesperson told TechCrunch.
However, the incident does raise the question as to whether or not Snap was considering adding new functionality to My AI that would allow the AI chatbot to post to Stories. Currently, the AI bot sends text messages and can even Snap you back with images — weird as they may be. But does it do Stories? Not yet, apparently.
Snap’s My AI was a controversial new addition to the app, which initially resulted in users leaving one-star reviews on the App Store and calling for its removal, as the AI was pinned to the top of the Chat feed and couldn’t be removed or disabled. The AI also faced safety concerns, after tests found that it would respond in an inappropriate manner to minors’ messages, a report by The Washington Post found. Snap later added additional safeguards and parental controls.