{"id":852370,"date":"2025-05-31T04:11:54","date_gmt":"2025-05-31T09:11:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/31\/the-download-sycophantic-llms-and-the-ai-hype-index\/"},"modified":"2025-05-31T04:11:54","modified_gmt":"2025-05-31T09:11:54","slug":"the-download-sycophantic-llms-and-the-ai-hype-index","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/31\/the-download-sycophantic-llms-and-the-ai-hype-index\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: sycophantic LLMs, and the AI Hype Index"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Back in April, OpenAI announced it was rolling back an update to its GPT-4o model that made ChatGPT\u2019s responses to user queries too sycophantic.<\/p>\n

An AI model that acts in an overly agreeable and flattering way is more than just annoying. It could reinforce users\u2019 incorrect beliefs, mislead people, and spread misinformation that can be dangerous\u2014a particular risk when increasing numbers of young people are using ChatGPT as a life advisor. And because sycophancy is difficult to detect, it can go unnoticed until a model or update has already been deployed.<\/p>\n

A new benchmark called Elephant that measures the sycophantic tendencies of major AI models could help companies avoid these issues in the future. But just knowing when models are sycophantic isn\u2019t enough; you need to be able to do something about it. And that\u2019s trickier. Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u2014Rhiannon Williams<\/em><\/p>\n

The AI Hype Index<\/strong><\/p>\n

Separating AI reality from hyped-up fiction isn\u2019t always easy. That\u2019s why we\u2019ve created the AI Hype Index\u2014a simple, at-a-glance summary of everything you need to know about the state of the industry. Take a look at this month\u2019s edition of the index here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The must-reads<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve combed the internet to find you today\u2019s most fun\/important\/scary\/fascinating stories about technology.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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1 Anduril is partnering with Meta to build an advanced weapons system<\/strong>
EagleEye\u2019s VR headsets will enhance soldiers\u2019 hearing and vision. (WSJ<\/a> $)
+ Palmer Luckey wants to turn \u201cwarfighters into technomancers.\u201d <\/em>(TechCrunch<\/a>)
+ Luckey and Mark Zuckerberg have buried the hatchet, then. <\/em>(Insider<\/a> $)
+ Palmer Luckey on the Pentagon\u2019s future of mixed reality. <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

2 A new Texas law requires app stores to verify users\u2019 ages
<\/strong>It\u2019s following in Utah\u2019s footsteps, which passed a similar bill in March. (NYT<\/a> $)
+ Apple has pushed back on the law. <\/em>(CNN<\/a>)<\/p>\n

3 What happens to DOGE now?<\/strong>
It has lost its leader and a top lieutenant within the space of a week. (WSJ<\/a> $)
+ Musk\u2019s departure raises questions over how much power it will wield without him. <\/em>(The Guardian<\/a>)
+ DOGE\u2019s tech takeover threatens the safety and stability of our critical data. <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

4 NASA\u2019s ambitions of a 2027 moon landing are looking less likely<\/strong>
It needs SpaceX\u2019s Starship, which keeps blowing up. (WP<\/a> $)
+ Is there a viable alternative? <\/em>(New Scientist<\/a> $)<\/p>\n

5 Students are using AI to generate nude images of each other<\/strong>
It\u2019s a grave and growing problem that no one has a solution for. (404 Media<\/a>)<\/p>\n

6 Google AI Overviews doesn\u2019t know what year it is
<\/strong>A year after its introduction, the feature is still making obvious mistakes. (Wired<\/a> $)
+ Google\u2019s new AI-powered search isn\u2019t fit to handle even basic queries. <\/em>(NYT<\/a> $)
+ The company is pushing AI into everything. Will it pay off? <\/em>(Vox<\/a>)
+ Why Google\u2019s AI Overviews gets things wrong. <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

7 Hugging Face has created two humanoid robots <\/strong>????<\/strong>
<\/strong>The machines are open source, meaning anyone can build software for them. (TechCrunch<\/a>)<\/p>\n

8 A popular vibe coding app has a major security flaw
<\/strong>Despite being notified about it months ago. (Semafor<\/a>)
+ Any AI coding program catering to amateurs faces the same issue. <\/em>(The Information<\/a> $)
+ What is vibe coding, exactly? <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

9 AI-generated videos are becoming way more realistic<\/strong>
But not when it comes to depicting gymnastics. (Ars Technica<\/a>)<\/p>\n

10 This electronic tattoo measures your stress levels<\/strong>
Consider it a mood ring for your face. (IEEE Spectrum<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Quote of the day<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI think finally we are seeing Apple being dragged into the child safety arena kicking and screaming.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014Sarah Gardner, CEO of child safety collective Heat Initiative, tells the Washington Post<\/a> why Texas\u2019 new app store law could signal a turning point for Apple.<\/p>\n

One more thing<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/figure>\n
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House-flipping algorithms are coming to your neighborhood<\/strong>When Michael Maxson found his dream home in Nevada, it was not owned by a person but by a tech company, Zillow. When he went to take a look at the property, however, he discovered it damaged by a huge water leak. Despite offering to handle the costly repairs himself, Maxson discovered that the house had already been sold to another family, at the same price he had offered.<\/p>\n

During this time, Zillow lost more than $420 million in three months of erratic house buying and unprofitable sales, leading analysts to question whether the entire tech-driven model is really viable. For the rest of us, a bigger question remains: Does the arrival of Silicon Valley tech point to a better future for housing or an industry disruption to fear? Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u2014Matthew Ponsford<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Rhiannon Williams<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back in April, OpenAI announced it was rolling back an update to its GPT-4o model that made ChatGPT\u2019s responses to user queries too sycophantic. An AI model that acts in an overly agreeable and flattering way is more than just annoying. It could reinforce users\u2019 incorrect beliefs, mislead people, and spread misinformation that can be<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":852371,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24097,144303,46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-852370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-download","category-sycophantic","category-technology"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=852370"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852370\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/852371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=852370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=852370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=852370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}