AI Pioneer Geoffrey Hinton's Personal Life Intersects with ChatGPT: A Breakup Story

Even the 'godfather of AI' failed to see this ChatGPT moment coming

He could never have expected this awkward outcome when he was building the foundations of AI all those years ago. Geoffrey Hinton, the man widely regarded as the "godfather of AI" for his groundbreaking work behind many of today's AI systems, has said on more than one occasion how the technology could potentially wipe out humanity if its development isn't handled with care. But while pondering such a profound possibility, OpenAI's popular ChatGPT chatbot recently surprised Hinton in a most unexpected way: His girlfriend used it to end their relationship. Recommended Videos "She got ChatGPT to tell me what a rat I was," he told the Financial Times in a recent interview, admitting that he was surprised by her move to call on the AI tool regarding such a delicate matter. "She got the chatbot to explain how awful my behavior was and gave it to me," the AI pioneer said, adding, "I didn't think I had been a rat, so it didn't make me feel too bad." In fact, getting AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT to compose breakup texts, or even ask for advice on how to end a relationship, appears to be nothing new, with an increasing number of people consulting AI on a whole raft of life issues. Hinton, who last year received the Nobel Prize in Physics for work in the 1980s that led to machine learning with artificial neural networks, quit Google in 2023 after working there for a decade on various AI projects. Now 77, the AI expert is a University Professor Emeritus in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto, an institution he's been closely affiliated with since 1987. Hinton still worries about how a superintelligent version of AI could cause major problems for humanity in the future, suggesting to the FT that those developing the technology today -- OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, and Google among them -- should try to shape it so that it mothers us "because the mother is very concerned about the baby, preserving the life of the baby." In other words, it needs to have maternal instincts. On the matter of when AI will actually gain superintelligence -- the goal of many of the top AI companies today -- Hinton says that "a lot of scientists agree between five and 20 years, that's the best bet." He also predicts that AI "is going to create massive unemployment and a huge rise in profits," with the technology making "a few people much richer and most people poorer." For that he blamed "the capitalist system," not AI. And with all of his knowledge, the AI specialist can only say that "we have no idea" how the technology will develop, adding that it "may be amazingly good, and it may be amazingly bad." On a brighter note, Hinton said he's now met a new partner. Here's hoping that the new relationship doesn't also end with a ChatGPT-worded breakup.

Godfather of AI Says His Girlfriend Broke Up With Him Using ChatGPT

Geoffrey Hinton, long considered a "godfather of AI" and who won the Nobel Prize in Physics last year, has a complicated relationship with the tech he pioneered at Google many years ago. He's long argued that AI poses an existential risk to humanity, and signed a letter earlier this year calling on OpenAI not to betray its non-profit roots. Even in his own personal life, it sounds like Hinton can't escape the tech. In an interview with the Financial Times, the 77-year-old revealed that his ex-girlfriend of several years had broken up with him -- by using ChatGPT, a product that would have been impossible without his groundbreaking research. "She got ChatGPT to tell me what a rat I was," he told the newspaper. "She got the chatbot to explain how awful my behaviour was and gave it to me." "I didn't think I had been a rat, so it didn't make me feel too bad," he added, in his own defense. It's a notable admission that highlights just how pervasive the tech has become in everyday life -- even for the "godfather of AI" and one of the biggest AI doomsayers out there. Hinton's ex is far from alone in using ChatGPT to dump their significant other. Particularly for young people, OpenAI's uber-popular chatbot has become a crutch during breakups, helping draft breakup texts and even pushing users into divorce. While a breakup certainly isn't on the level of a powerful AI causing an extinction-level event, as Hinton has warned of, it still feels notable. And the University of Toronto professor is still warning that the tech could lead to "catastrophic outcomes." During his FT interview, in fact, Hinton said that we should act now before it's too late. "Suppose there was an alien invasion you could see with a telescope that would arrive in 10 years, would you be saying 'How do we stay positive?'" he told the FT. "No, you'd be saying, 'How on earth are we going to deal with this?' If staying positive means pretending it's not going to happen, then people shouldn't stay positive." Hinton also argued that AI will have drastic consequences for society, creating "massive unemployment and a huge rise in profits." "It will make a few people much richer and most people poorer," he told the newspaper. "That's not AI's fault, that is the capitalist system." Despite the doomsaying, Hinton admitted that he uses ChatGPT in his personal life, asking it how to fix household appliances, as well as other "research." Fortunately, his recent ChatGPT-facilitated breakup doesn't appear to have fazed Hinton much. The researcher revealed that he had since moved on. "I met somebody I liked more, you know how it goes," he told the FT. "Maybe you don't!"

Godfather of AI got dumped via ChatGPT: Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton reveals his girlfriend used a chatbot to break up

Geoffrey Hinton, Nobel Prize-winning computer scientist known as the "Godfather of AI," revealed his girlfriend ended their relationship using ChatGPT, highlighting how deeply AI has entered personal lives. In an interview with the Financial Times, Hinton reflected on the irony, given his role in pioneering the technology. While he warns of AI's risks -- from mass unemployment to existential threats -- he also admits using it daily, underscoring its growing influence in both society and intimacy.