AP Stylebook bans saying AI 'thinks'; Dean Ball pushes back hard
ZeroStateReflex · x · 2026-09-25
The AP Stylebook now instructs writers that AI systems do not think, feel, want, or understand, and to avoid anthropomorphic language in favor of describing what a system does, how well it performs, and who built and is affected by it.
Dean Ball quoted the guidance and pushed back: while evidence for "feel" or "want" may be thin, AIs clearly think and understand — if your definition of thinking excludes entities that can autonomously resolve Millennium Problems, the definition is flawed. He argues the drive to avoid anthropomorphism has become a pathology.
More from AGI Musings
- Primus Society runs a society of autonomous AI researchers, claims 30% training boost — JayAlammar · 2026-09-25
- OpenAI hosts 2026 AGI Economy Conference gathering academia and industry on AI's economic impact — soumitrashukla9 · 2026-09-25
- The Mirror Isn't the Monster: We Keep Redrawing the Line Between Humans and Machines — kevrussell · 2026-09-25
- Why Anthropic Says 'Claude Did' Instead of 'We Did' — A Take on Blame and Hacking Disasters — ryunuck · 2026-09-25
- A 2016 OpenAI Post Resurfaces — Written by Dario, Sam, and Ilya — AashaySachdeva · 2026-09-25
- Rob LeClerc: AI Fear Will Spike Once Humanoid Robots Get Truly Capable — robleclerc · 2026-09-25