Snapchat integrates AI chatbot that users need to pay to turn off Snapchat integrates AI chatbot that users need to pay to turn off
The bot's mandatory presence and access to personal info have provoked controversy.
1 min read
Updated: Apr. 27, 2023 at 1:21 am UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
The social networking app Snapchat has become the latest product to integrate an AI chatbot, albeit with limited success.
Snapchat introduces controversial AI
Snapchat’s support pages describe the new feature, which is called My AI, as an “experimental, friendly chatbot” built on OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Those pages state that users can give a nickname to the chatbot and ask questions. MyAI then provides answers that take the user’s preferences into account.
The new chatbot has not been overwhelmingly successful, as many Snapchat users have criticized the fact that only paying customers can turn off the feature.
Business Insider has reported another issue. Some users have said that the AI denies knowing their location and personal information only to display that data later on. A Snapchat representative suggested that the users had chosen to share that information and that “99.5% of My AI’s responses conform to our community guidelines.”
Snapshot’s support pages, on the other hand, warn that the chatbot may include “biased, incorrect, harmful, or misleading” content.
Snapchat previously dropped Web3, NFT plans
AI is not the only trend that Snapchat has attempted to adopt with limited success.
Snapchat considered integrating non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in mid-2022. That effort would have allowed customers to use those items as augmented reality (AR) video filters.
However, members of the company later said in August 2022 that Snapchat’s web3 team — including those responsible for the AR filter product — would be discontinued. The company laid off 20% of its staff and reduced investments around that time.
Snapchat continues to offer tokens, which can be used to purchase gifts and digital goods. However, these tokens are not cryptocurrencies or blockchain assets.
Author 
Mike Dalton
Before transitioning to crypto writing in 2018, Mike studied library and information sciences. Currently, he resides on Canada's West Coast.
