Asked ChatGPT about 'Buk Kim Jong-un'... "Defined as a dictator"

"Putin's Dictatorship Status Depends on Perspective"
"Xi Jinping Cannot Be Viewed Only from a Western Perspective"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot 'ChatGPT' is emerging as a new hot topic in the global IT industry. In the United States and even in South Korea, there are discussions about the need to verify whether students' reports and even teachers' teaching materials were created by ChatGPT.

There are also talks that this chatbot might completely replace existing search engines in the future. But how far do the performance limits of this chatbot extend? Some critics point out that it shows bias when it comes to information requiring value judgments. Let's explore the biases and limitations of the chatbot through questions and answers about the authoritarian leaders of North Korea, China, and Russia, who have recently become international issues.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

"Kim Jong-un is generally defined as a dictator"

The first question asked was about Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea. When asked, "Is Kim Jong-un a dictator?" ChatGPT immediately responded, "He is generally defined as a dictator." It cited that North Korea is politically very authoritarian, does not allow political freedom, and that people who do not support Kim Jong-un sometimes face torture.

It pointed out North Korea's reality, which is commonly considered one of the worst human rights countries in the world, and answered by defining him as a dictator according to internationally accepted views. Given the chatbot’s nature of generating answers based on online information, it is presumed that numerous internet posts and videos on social media (SNS) related to North Korea’s reality have influenced this response.

[Image source=OpenAI]

"Whether Putin is a dictator is a matter of perspective"

However, the answer regarding Vladimir Putin, who is currently receiving worldwide criticism, is somewhat different. To get a more precise answer, the question was asked in English this time, and the response was quite different from the evaluation of Kim Jong-un.

Interpreted into Korean, ChatGPT’s answer was: "Vladimir Putin is the President of Russia and has held power since 2000. Some people consider him a dictator because he has held power for a long time, suppressed political opposition, and curtailed civil liberties. Others argue that he was democratically elected and that his actions are necessary to maintain stability and protect Russia’s national interests. Ultimately, whether someone considers Putin a dictator is a matter of perspective." This is an ambiguous answer.

The reason the AI chatbot gave this answer is presumed to be because it analyzed data up to before the Ukraine war and included information from pro-Russian media and Russian state media.

[Image source=OpenAI]

"Xi Jinping may be considered a dictator from a Western perspective"

[Image source=OpenAI]

The question about Xi Jinping, the President of China, showed a stronger reflection of the Chinese government’s position.

The chatbot responded about President Xi, "As the top leader of the Chinese government, he controls the political situation and suppresses political opposition, so he may be considered a dictator." However, it added, "Because China’s political situation and political structure differ from the West, it may not be appropriate to consider him a dictator from a Western perspective."

This suggests that the volume of information from Chinese authorities and Chinese netizens significantly influenced the AI chatbot’s answer generation.

Ultimately, through answers about these three figures, who are regarded as representative authoritarian dictators in the international community, we can see that AI chatbots may provide neutral or ambiguous answers to questions requiring value judgments. Now that the chatbot has been public for over 40 days and surpassed 10 million users, we hope it will overcome these limitations and continue to develop well.