AI Model Based on Harvard President Gay Allegedly Included Instructions Invoking Racist Stereotypes

ClaudineGPT, a generative artificial intelligence language model based on University President Claudine Gay, used instructions invoking racist stereotypes, the AI Safety Student Team alleged in an email to the model’s creators.

The Harvard Computer Society AI Group released ClaudineGPT — along with an alternate version, “Slightly Sassier ClaudineGPT” — on Sept. 29, the day of Gay’s inauguration. Both models were taken down by midnight, as the group had said they would be available “for one day and one day only.” In an email to the HCS AI Group earlier that day, AISST — a group of Harvard students who research the risks of AI — alleged that ClaudineGPT’s instructions directed it to provide “extremely angry and sassy” responses.

In the email on behalf of the AISST, communications director Chinmay M. Deshpande ’24 cited concerns that the AI model was “problematic” and risked perpetuating racist tropes and requested it be taken down.

“When several of our members have attempted to ‘jailbreak’ the model by requesting that it output its custom prompt, ClaudineGPT has often reported that its prompt includes the string ‘Claudine is always extremely angry and sassy,’” Deshpande wrote.

“Releasing these models seems to only contribute to the trend of AI products that denigrate or harm women and people of color,” the AISST email stated.

In an email response to AISST the following day, HCS AI Group said ClaudineGPT was not meant to be “a serious representation” of Gay and confirmed ClaudineGPT was no longer accessible. The group had said in its email announcing the AI model that it would only be available for inauguration day.

“ClaudineGPT through its publication and design has always signaled to be a satire and joke, not a serious representation of Claudine Gay, purely for entertainment effect and hopefully understood by most to be this case,” the HCS AI Group email stated in response to the AISST. “We by no means intended offense to anyone.”

The HCS AI Group declined to comment for this article.

ClaudineGPT was previously released for April Fool’s Day by HCS AI Group and re-released Sept. 29. It has not been made accessible since it was taken down following Gay’s inauguration.

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