Coften occurs with great revolutions: first we welcome them as miraclesthen we transform them into habits and even after that we begin to look at them with distrust. It’s an almost inevitable parable and artificial intelligence is no exception. And that is indeed what is happening to ChatGPT. The chatbot that has become the classmate or office colleague of almost a billion people since 2022 is no longer just prodigious software, but has become a symbol of change, but also of collective fears. And when you become a symbol, attracting storms is a moment. Today this storm has a name: QuitGPT.
QuitGPT: why we question AI today
The “rebels” who are part of a viral movementborn on social media, ask users to do the unthinkable: delete the account and turn your back on Sam Altman and co. However, this is not the usual protest against machines that steal our jobs; it is something much more visceral and, in some ways, new. QuitGPT is an online campaign that invites you to “quit” with ChatGPT and with OpenAIthe company that develops it, for different reasons that affect the lives of all of us.
A part of the web is taking to the streets
Let’s be clear, ChatGPT is not disappearing at all. Indeed, its numbers are still mind-boggling. However, the QuitGPT movement has intercepted a discontent that had been smoldering under the ashes for some time. The spark was political. It all started when it became known that Greg Brockman, the president of OpenAI, donated 25 million dollars to a super PAC, Political Action Committee, i.e. a committee that raises money to influence elections, in support of Donald Trump. For some of the digital community, this was a betrayal. The idea that the money from subscriptions or the data donated by users ends up financing a specific political party has transformed the chatbot, in the eyes of the protesters, into a cog in the electoral machine. From neutral assistant to deployed instrument: the step was very short.
A movement born on social media calls for deleting ChatGPT and abandoning OpenAI for political and ethical reasons. (Getty Images)
The shadow of borders and the ethical use of technology
But there is another point that touches even deeper chords: the relationship between artificial intelligence and human rights management. QuitGPT points the finger at the links between OpenAI and ICE, the American agency that deals with borders and expulsions. It seems, in fact, that the agency is using GPT-4 templates to select and manage sensitive data related to migrants. For those who join the protest, this is the crossing of a red line. It’s no longer a question of having an email or an essay written: we’re talking about algorithms that enter into the management of the lives of the most vulnerable people. And for activists, staying on ChatGPT means becoming silent accomplices of this system.
Between lazy responses and the arrival of advertising
Added to all this is a daily tiredness, that of those who feel that the “toy” is breaking. Many historical users they complain that the chatbot has become more superficial or lazy in responding. And then there is the arrival of advertising in the free version, which dealt the final blow to the sense of “community” that was created at the beginning. This is where QuitGPT finds fertile ground: it offers an ethical rationale to those who, deep down, were already a little disappointed by the technical performances. The movement suggests migrating to alternatives like Claude or Geminieven though we know well that no technology giant is truly a happy island or without huge economic interests.
QuitGPT, mass escape from the OpenAI Chatbot?
With hundreds of millions of monthly users, ChatGPT remains one of the most used services in the world. QuitGPT supporters still represent a minority. However, we know that cultural movements are rarely born large. They often start as hashtags, online discussions, symbolic campaigns. Then, sometimes, suddenly, public perception changes. And since in the artificial intelligence market, products are starting to look more and more alike, reputation is starting to matter. QuitGPT, It’s not a mass escape, but it’s certainly a wake-up call. Not so much against a single chatbot, but against the idea that large platforms should enter the political debate.
