U, ROBOT

Vanderbilt Apologizes for ChatGPT-Written Email About Michigan State Shooting

“There is a sick and twisted irony to making a computer write your message about community and togetherness,” a student said.

Officials at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College are very, very sorry after getting caught using generative AI to pen a message to the community about the recent mass shooting at Michigan State University, they said. The email, first reported by the Nashville school’s student newspaper, was sent out to the Peabody community by its office of equity, diversity, and inclusion last Friday. It included a telling addendum: “Paraphrase from OpenAI’s ChatGPT language model, personal communication, February 15, 2023.” Students were swift to react with revulsion and horror, with one senior telling the Vanderbilt Hustler, “There is a sick and twisted irony to making a computer write your message about community and togetherness because you can’t be bothered to reflect on it yourself.” Nicole Joseph, an associate dean at Vanderbilt, issued an apology later that day, saying the choice had reflected “poor judgment.” She added: “[T]his moment gives us all an opportunity to reflect on what we know and what we still must learn about AI.” Joseph and an assistant dean involved with the email named Hasina Mohyuddin have temporarily stepped down from their positions pending an investigation into the matter, Peabody Dean Camilla Benbow said Saturday.