AI Researchers Secretly Used Reddit to Test Chatbot Persuasion 1z2r72 Technology News

University of Zurich researchers used AI bots to test persuasion on Reddit without consent. 361s63

Written by Gadgets 360 Staff | Updated: 5 May 2025 21:16 IST

AI Researchers Secretly Used Reddit to Test Chatbot Persuasion

Photo Credit: Pexels/Brett Jorndan 65d2z

AI chatbots secretly manipulated Reddit s, sparking legal and ethical backlash

Highlights

AI bots covertly posted over 1,700 comments to manipulate Reddit debates
University of Zurich faces legal threats from Reddit over secret AI exper
Subreddit s denounce study as unethical, deceptive, and unauthor

ment

In a covert experiment now sparking legal threats, researchers from the University of Zurich deployed AI agents posted more than 1,700 comments while posing as real s, ranging from a male rape survivor minimising trauma to a black man criticising Black Lives Matter. None of the subreddit s were told the posts were created by artificial intelligence.

AI Chatbots Fooled Reddit s in Secret Study, Triggering Legal and Ethical Firestorm 4z2361

As per a 404 Media report, the study's findings were not announced until after the experiment had concluded; researchers and s of the subreddit revealed their activities and linked to a draft of their results. The draft noted that the bots were between three and six times more persuasive than human commenters, gauged through Reddit's award system for changed opinions.

To customise responses, one artificial intelligence looked through histories, thereby enhancing the effect. Amazingly, none of the Reddit s seemed to believe that artificial intelligence wrote the comments.

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The reaction came quickly. Publicly denouncing the experiment, s on r/ChangeMyView mentioned it was immoral and unapproved. Also added that they question whether 'it has not been done before' is a justification. Chief legal officer Ben Lee of Reddit also attacked the research, claiming it breached both fundamental human rights standards and agreements of the site. Under the pseudonym traceroo, Lee indicated Reddit would seek legal action against the University of Zurich.

After noting objections, the university advised 404 Media it will not publish research findings. The ethics committee has updated guidelines to prevent similar errors in future research initiatives. The results raise the question of how artificial intelligence shapes online discussion, particularly in sensitive or political contexts. The case of Reddit bolsters the “dead internet theory”—that AI-written text now dominates the web.

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