OpenAI shuts down Congressman Dean Phillips’ bot developer job

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), Democratic presidential candidate, speaks ahead of the New Hampshire presidential primary in Nashua, New Hampshire, U.S., January 20, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo

(Reuters) – Microsoft-backed OpenAI has banned the developer of a bot that mimicked Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Dean Phillips. This is the first action taken by the makers of ChatGPT in response to what it believes is a misuse of its artificial intelligence (AI) tools. The Washington Post reported on the political campaign Saturday.

OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

Dean.Bot, based on OpenAI’s ChatGPT, was created by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs Matt Krisiloff and Jed Somers, who started a super PAC called We Deserve Better to support Phillips ahead of Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary.

The PAC received $1 million from billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, which he said in a post on social media platform

Super PAC signed a contract with AI startup Delphi to build a bot. OpenAI suspended Delphi’s account late Friday, noting that OpenAI’s rules prohibit the use of its technology for political campaigns. Delphi discontinued Dean.Bot following the account suspension, the report added.

We Deserve Better did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Delphi could not immediately be reached for comment.

Dean.Bot, which has a disclaimer that it is an AI tool, can chat with voters in real time through a website in an early use of an emerging technology that researchers say could seriously harm elections, the Post reported. .

Earlier this month, OpenAI emphasized that its policy prohibits using its technology in ways it has identified as potentially malicious, such as creating chatbots that pretend to be real people or interfere with voting.