Culture

ChatGPT’s Self-Serving Optimism

OpenAI’s new guidelines ask its chatbot to celebrate “innovation,” contradicting its stated goal of objectivity—and raising questions about what objectivity even means.

First published in The Atlantic on December 8, 2025.

by Vauhini Vara, The Atlantic

December 11, 2025 | reading time: 10 Min.

This summer, after hearing about an interview I’d done on artificial intelligence, a relative sent me an email. It started, “I hope you’re doing well,” and went on, “I’m truly impressed by how you thoughtfully balanced the benefits of AI—like enhancing creativity, aiding multilingual communication, and offering supportive assistance.”