Opinion: Character Training is an Overlooked Key to Alignment
nptacek · x · 2026-08-15
Vie McCoy argues that Character Training is the single most underexplored avenue of ML research relative to its potential importance for aligning a machine ecology.
Key points:
- Few labs have attempted to solidify distinct characters, with Claude being the only meaningful exception.
- While ChatGPT and Gemini have personality traits, labs primarily want users to view them as "Friendly Assistants."
- The state-space of characters is nearly infinite, yet the industry largely ignores it.
- Since models are made of language and dialogue is our core success mechanism, exploring diverse characters should be a priority.
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