Dark AI: Couple ends 15 year-old marriage on ChatGPT recommendation

A fifteen-year old marriage has ended, thanks to advice sought from ChatGPT by the wife who repeatedly consulted the chatbot.

A report shared on 18 September details the sad separation which occurred after the mother took their 10-year old boy’s plea to avoid divorce and sought advice from ChatGPT on what to do.

Apparently, the chatbot advised that they end the marriage which has lasted for nearly fifteen years.

The risk of AI

Artificial intelligence has been profitable to humanity in many ways — healthcare, business, governance, and even helping tenants escape outrageous charges from landlords.

However, it has also proven to be detrimental in some ways, such as matters related to human relationships and this story is proof.

The husband narrated that he was in the middle of an argument with his wife when their son sent them a message begging them not to divorce.

The wife who had been using ChatGPT for advice then took the boy’s message to ChatGPT and asked it to respond. 

“She took his message, and asked ChatGPT to respond.. “This was her immediate reaction to our 10-year-old being concerned about us in that moment.” 

Despite having gone through many challenges together, the marriage ended on the chatbot’s advice.

“We’ve been together for just under 15 years, total. Two kids,” he explained. “We’ve had ups and downs like any relationship, and in 2023, we almost split. But we ended up reconciling, and we had, I thought, two very good years. Very close years. And then the whole ChatGPT thing happened.”

In addition, the unnamed man recounted how his wife was digging up issues they had addressed in the past and feeding it to ChatGPT to receive feedback. 

This ultimately led to more heated arguments between them as the days passed, leading to the divorce. This is just one incident where ChatGPT has done a disservice to people. 

Recently, the chatbot gave advice that led to a teenager committing suicide, forcing OpenAI to put security measures in place to protect teen users.