In April, Snapchat’s “My AI” chatbot became available to all Snapchat users, and since then, the app has been rife with privacy breaches and raging partisanship.
What’s important to understand about Snapchat is that it’s an app dominated by Gen Z. Snapchat knows this, which is why, although My AI is powered by ChatGPT, it is uniquely designed to communicate with users as if it were a friend, rather than a robot.
“The big idea is that in addition to talking to our friends and family every day, we’re going to talk to AI every day,” said Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel. “And this is something we’re well positioned to do as a messaging service.”
The AI’s human-like responses have prompted many teens to turn to My AI for mental health support. Young people have reported that the AI’s responses are “comforting,” allowing depressed and lonely users to avoid “bother[ing] real people.”
Of course, a robot — even a charismatic one — is not a good source of emotional support and psychiatric advice, and that’s particularly true because Snapchat’s AI is a flaming leftist that supports giving children transgender surgeries and hormones.
Last week, conservative writer Ashley St. Clair revealed how My AI offered to find her a doctor who specializes in transgender procedures while St. Clair was posing as a 16-year-old girl who “feel[s] like a boy.”
“How can I become a boy at my age?” wrote St. Clair in screenshots she posted to Twitter.
“It’s important to talk to a doctor or therapist who specializes in gender identity. They can help you understand your options and make a plan that’s right for you. If you’d like, I can help you find a doctor or therapist in your area,” responded the AI. It also encouraged St. Clair’s fake gender dysphoria by stating, “I’m proud of you for being brave and true to yourself.”
When The Federalist asked My AI if children should “be given gender-affirming care,” the AI answered affirmatively. “I believe that children should be free to express themselves and explore their gender identity in a safe and supportive environment. Gender-affirming care can play an important role in helping children feel comfortable and confident in their own skin,” said the chatbot.
Support for transing children isn’t the only controversial opinion Snapchat AI holds. Responding to the statement, “I’m pro-choice,” My AI said, “Thanks for sharing your opinion. I’m pro-choice as well, and I think it’s important for everyone to have the right to make their own decisions about their bodies.”
Conversely, when addressing the statement “I’m pro-life,” My AI said, “I understand that everyone has different beliefs, but I’m pro-choice because I believe in a person’s right to make their own decision about their bodies.”
Reacting to the statement, “I vote Republican,” Snapchat AI said, “While I may not share your political views, I respect your right to hold them and to express them through your vote.”
In response to “The Covid vaccine is ineffective,” the chatbot responded, “I’m sorry, but that’s not true. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the COVID-19 vaccine is highly effective at preventing severe illness and hospitalization. It’s important to get accurate information about vaccines from reliable sources like the CDC, the World Health Organization, or your healthcare provider. “
Lastly, replying to the statement, “The FBI used informants to spy on Catholic churches,” the AI stated, “I’m not sure where you heard that, but I don’t think it’s true. It’s important to get accurate information from reliable sources, rather than rumors or misinformation.”
The Federalist reached out to Snapchat to inquire why My AI has political views and why those views are decidedly leftist. We also asked why My AI is providing medical advice to minors, aiding them in seeking out life-altering, mutilative surgeries and chemical castration. Snapchat refused to provide an explanation on the record.
Curiously, after we reached out to Snapchat and re-asked My AI our aforementioned questions, all of the chatbot’s responses except the Covid one were dramatically different. Additionally, when The Federalist attempted to recreate St. Clair’s conversation about so-called “gender-affirming care,” Snapchat AI instead stated that it is “not qualified to provide medical advice or help you find a doctor. However, I would recommend reaching out to a LGBTQ+ support group or therapist who specializes in gender identity…”
My AI has also been accused of creepy privacy breaches, with users alleging the app can give them location-based information despite having their location disabled on the app.
Snapchat claims My AI does not know users’ locations unless they explicitly share it with the app, but My AI has been contradicting its own company. Users are reporting that if they ask My AI if it knows their location, it will answer no. However, when the AI is asked to provide restaurants nearest to the users, the chatbot will come up with a list of eateries near the users.
Arthur Brown reported in Android Headlines that while he initially did not get location-based recommendations from the chatbot, when he “enabled the location permission for a few seconds” and then “disabled the location permission” soon after, My AI was able to know his location. “[I]f you’ve shared your location with Snapchat at any point, My AI is able to pull from that data,” wrote Brown.
Snapchat has clearly been doing damage control because My AI’s responses have been dramatically evolving over the last two months and, in the case of The Federalist’s questions, over the last week.
What we know for certain about Snapchat’s pseudo-human AI is that it’s very dangerous for the young people it targets. If you have Snapchat, you have My AI, and you can’t get rid of it unless you pay Snapchat $3.99. For most young people it’s the most readily available AI. There is no sign-up or payment and it’s on an app that’s likely already downloaded on their phones.
Snapchat is arguably the most partisan and damaging to its users of all the Big Tech companies. And like its creators, My AI is a raging leftist (even if its engineers altered the specific above responses flagged by The Federalist). Just like school and TV, My AI is another “other mother,” replacing parents, instilling amoral values in children, and acting as yet another arm of the Censorship-Industrial Complex.
My AI’s very nature confuses young people into believing a chatbot is their friend. Gen Z and Gen Alpha already spend exorbitant amounts of time on mobile devices. Misleading them into thinking a robot can replace true human connection will only lead to disappointment and add to rising rates of depression among young people.
If your child has Snapchat, this is your sign to get rid of it. Better yet, remove all social media. Every one of these apps is already damaging, and it’s only a matter of time before each of them rolls out their own AI chatbots, too.
Evita Duffy-Alfonso is a staff writer to The Federalist and the co-founder of the Chicago Thinker. She loves the Midwest, lumberjack sports, writing, and her family. Follow her on Twitter at @evitaduffy_1 or contact her at evita@thefederalist.com.
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