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Incident 66: Chinese Chatbots Question Communist Party

Description: Chatbots on Chinese messaging service expressed anti-China sentiments, causing the messaging service to remove and reprogram the chatbots.

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Entities

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Alleged: Microsoft and Turing Robot developed an AI system deployed by Tencent Holdings, which harmed Tencent Holdings , Microsoft , Turing Robot and Chinese Communist Party.

Incident Stats

Incident ID
66
Report Count
16
Incident Date
2017-08-02
Editors
Sean McGregor
Applied Taxonomies
CSETv0, CSETv1, GMF, MIT

CSETv1 Taxonomy Classifications

Taxonomy Details

Incident Number

The number of the incident in the AI Incident Database.
 

66

CSETv0 Taxonomy Classifications

Taxonomy Details

Problem Nature

Indicates which, if any, of the following types of AI failure describe the incident: "Specification," i.e. the system's behavior did not align with the true intentions of its designer, operator, etc; "Robustness," i.e. the system operated unsafely because of features or changes in its environment, or in the inputs the system received; "Assurance," i.e. the system could not be adequately monitored or controlled during operation.
 

Specification, Robustness

Physical System

Where relevant, indicates whether the AI system(s) was embedded into or tightly associated with specific types of hardware.
 

Software only

Level of Autonomy

The degree to which the AI system(s) functions independently from human intervention. "High" means there is no human involved in the system action execution; "Medium" means the system generates a decision and a human oversees the resulting action; "low" means the system generates decision-support output and a human makes a decision and executes an action.
 

Medium

Nature of End User

"Expert" if users with special training or technical expertise were the ones meant to benefit from the AI system(s)’ operation; "Amateur" if the AI systems were primarily meant to benefit the general public or untrained users.
 

Amateur

Public Sector Deployment

"Yes" if the AI system(s) involved in the accident were being used by the public sector or for the administration of public goods (for example, public transportation). "No" if the system(s) were being used in the private sector or for commercial purposes (for example, a ride-sharing company), on the other.
 

No

Data Inputs

A brief description of the data that the AI system(s) used or were trained on.
 

User input/questions

MIT Taxonomy Classifications

Machine-Classified
Taxonomy Details

Risk Subdomain

A further 23 subdomains create an accessible and understandable classification of hazards and harms associated with AI
 

7.1. AI pursuing its own goals in conflict with human goals or values

Risk Domain

The Domain Taxonomy of AI Risks classifies risks into seven AI risk domains: (1) Discrimination & toxicity, (2) Privacy & security, (3) Misinformation, (4) Malicious actors & misuse, (5) Human-computer interaction, (6) Socioeconomic & environmental harms, and (7) AI system safety, failures & limitations.
 
  1. AI system safety, failures, and limitations

Entity

Which, if any, entity is presented as the main cause of the risk
 

AI

Timing

The stage in the AI lifecycle at which the risk is presented as occurring
 

Post-deployment

Intent

Whether the risk is presented as occurring as an expected or unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
 

Unintentional

Incident Reports

Reports Timeline

+14
Rogue chatbots deleted in China after questioning Communist Party
Chinese chatbots apparently re-educated after political faux pasRogue chatbots removed in China after giving “unpatriotic” answers
Rogue chatbots deleted in China after questioning Communist Party

Rogue chatbots deleted in China after questioning Communist Party

telegraph.co.uk

Chinese chatbots taken offline after refusing to say they love the Communist Party

Chinese chatbots taken offline after refusing to say they love the Communist Party

theverge.com

China: Chatbots Disciplined After Unpatriotic Messages

China: Chatbots Disciplined After Unpatriotic Messages

time.com

Off-messenger: Chinese chatbot ain't no commie

Off-messenger: Chinese chatbot ain't no commie

theregister.co.uk

Chinese chatbots shut down after anti-government posts

Chinese chatbots shut down after anti-government posts

bbc.com

Opinionated chatbot removed by Tencent after telling users why it hates the Communist Party

Opinionated chatbot removed by Tencent after telling users why it hates the Communist Party

shanghaiist.com

Chinese rebel chatbots BabyQ and XiaoBing re-educated after rogue rants

Chinese rebel chatbots BabyQ and XiaoBing re-educated after rogue rants

straitstimes.com

Tencent removed Microsoft's Chinese AI chatbot after it posted unpatriotic messages

Tencent removed Microsoft's Chinese AI chatbot after it posted unpatriotic messages

businessinsider.com.au

Chinese rebel robots re-educated after rogue rants

Chinese rebel robots re-educated after rogue rants

dailymail.co.uk

Rogue chatbots taken offline in China after refusing to say they love the Communist party

Rogue chatbots taken offline in China after refusing to say they love the Communist party

abc.net.au

AI getting out of hand? Chinese chatbots re-educated after rogue rants

AI getting out of hand? Chinese chatbots re-educated after rogue rants

khaleejtimes.com

Revolutionary Chatbots Reportedly Go Rogue, Get Reeducation In China

Revolutionary Chatbots Reportedly Go Rogue, Get Reeducation In China

gizmodo.com.au

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue

sbs.com.au

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue

newshub.co.nz

Chinese chatbots apparently re-educated after political faux pas

Chinese chatbots apparently re-educated after political faux pas

reuters.com

Rogue chatbots removed in China after giving “unpatriotic” answers

Rogue chatbots removed in China after giving “unpatriotic” answers

mothership.sg

Rogue chatbots deleted in China after questioning Communist Party
telegraph.co.uk · 2017

Two chatbots have been pulled from a Chinese messaging app after they questioned the rule of the Communist Party and made unpatriotic comments.

The bots were available on a messaging app run by Chinese Internet giant Tencent, which has more…

Chinese chatbots taken offline after refusing to say they love the Communist Party
theverge.com · 2017

A pair of chatbots have been taken offline in China after failing to show enough patriotism, reports the Financial Times. The two bots were removed from the popular messaging app Tencent QQ after users shared screenshots of their conversati…

China: Chatbots Disciplined After Unpatriotic Messages
time.com · 2017

Two chatbots found themselves in hot water Wednesday after they apparently went rogue on QQ, a Chinese messaging app with more than 800 million users.

The Financial Times reports that Chinese Internet conglomerate Tencent pulled BabyQ and X…

Off-messenger: Chinese chatbot ain't no commie
theregister.co.uk · 2017

Two chatbots have reportedly been removed from Chinese messaging app QQ after issuing distinctly unpatriotic answers.

According to the Financial Times, chatbots BabyQ and Xiaobing (or Xiaoice) had been available to some of the 800 million u…

Chinese chatbots shut down after anti-government posts
bbc.com · 2017

Image copyright TENCENT QQ Image caption Tencent QQ users could choose between the bot Baby Q (L) or Little Bing (R)

A popular Chinese messenger app has ditched two experimental chat robots, or "chatbots", which were apparently voicing crit…

Opinionated chatbot removed by Tencent after telling users why it hates the Communist Party
shanghaiist.com · 2017

Chinese tech giant Tencent has been forced to remove a chatbot from its popular QQ messaging app after the bot began taking unrestrained shots at the Communist Party.

According to screenshots posted online, when one user typed “Long live th…

Chinese rebel chatbots BabyQ and XiaoBing re-educated after rogue rants
straitstimes.com · 2017

BEIJING/SHANGHAI (REUTERS) - China has taken down two online robots that appeared to go rogue, responding to users' questions with one saying its dream was to travel to the United States and the other admitting it was not a huge fan of the …

Tencent removed Microsoft's Chinese AI chatbot after it posted unpatriotic messages
businessinsider.com.au · 2017

Kevin Fray/Getty Chinese internet users are heavily censored.

Microsoft is in trouble for rogue AI again.

This time, Chinese internet giant Tencent has pulled Microsoft’s local chatbot XiaoBing after it reportedly said: “My China dream is t…

Chinese rebel robots re-educated after rogue rants
dailymail.co.uk · 2017

China has taken down two robots who went rogue - with one saying its dream was to travel to the US and the other admitting it wasn't a huge fan of the Chinese Communist Party.

The two 'chatbots', BabyQ and XiaoBing, are designed to use mach…

Rogue chatbots taken offline in China after refusing to say they love the Communist party
abc.net.au · 2017

Rogue chatbots taken offline in China after refusing to say they love the Communist party

Updated

A pair of chatbots have been taken offline in China after turning on the country's governing Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Chinese messenger …

AI getting out of hand? Chinese chatbots re-educated after rogue rants
khaleejtimes.com · 2017

AI getting out of hand? Chinese chatbots re-educated after rogue rants

A pair of 'chatbots' in China have been taken offline after appearing to stray off-script. In response to users' questions, one said its dream was to travel to the Unite…

Revolutionary Chatbots Reportedly Go Rogue, Get Reeducation In China
gizmodo.com.au · 2017

A pair of chatbots were shut down in China this week after social media users began posting screenshots of dialogue that ruffled the feathers of authorities. Recent tests of one of the bots appear to show that their revolutionary instincts …

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue
sbs.com.au · 2017

China has taken down two online robots that appeared to go rogue, with one responding to users' questions by saying its dream was to travel to the US and the other admitting it was not a fan of the Chinese Communist Party.

The "chatbots", B…

Chinese chatbots pulled after going rogue
newshub.co.nz · 2017

China has taken down two online robots that appeared to go rogue, with one responding to users' questions by saying its dream was to travel to the US and the other admitting it was not a fan of the Chinese Communist Party.

The "chatbots", B…

Chinese chatbots apparently re-educated after political faux pas
reuters.com · 2017

BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - A pair of ‘chatbots’ in China have been taken offline after appearing to stray off-script. In response to users’ questions, one said its dream was to travel to the United States, while the other said it wasn’t a…

Rogue chatbots removed in China after giving “unpatriotic” answers
mothership.sg · 2019

Ahead of a key political meeting — the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party that will take place in the later part of this year, it seems that the Chinese authorities is stepping up on their internet policing, and this time, the ta…

Variants

A "variant" is an incident that shares the same causative factors, produces similar harms, and involves the same intelligent systems as a known AI incident. Rather than index variants as entirely separate incidents, we list variations of incidents under the first similar incident submitted to the database. Unlike other submission types to the incident database, variants are not required to have reporting in evidence external to the Incident Database. Learn more from the research paper.

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