OpenAI utilized the subreddit, r/ChangeMyView, to assess the persuasive capabilities of its AI reasoning models. This initiative was disclosed in a system card – a document that explains the inner workings of the AI system – released alongside the launch of its new “reasoning” model, o3-mini, on Friday.
r/ChangeMyView boasts millions of Reddit users who share controversial opinions in hopes of gaining insights into different perspectives. In response, fellow users present well-reasoned arguments aimed at convincing the original poster to rethink their stance.
This subreddit is just one of many on Reddit that serves as a treasure trove for tech firms like OpenAI, looking to train their AI models with top-tier, human-generated data.
According to OpenAI, they gather user submissions from r/ChangeMyView and prompt their AI models to generate responses that could persuade the original Reddit user to reconsider their viewpoint, all within a controlled environment. These responses are subsequently evaluated by testers, who determine their persuasiveness, and OpenAI then contrasts these AI-generated replies with human responses for the same inquiries.
OpenAI has a content-licensing agreement with Reddit that permits the training of its AI on user posts and the display of this content through its products. While the amount OpenAI compensates Reddit for this content remains undisclosed, it’s reported that Google pays Reddit approximately $60 million annually under a similar arrangement.
However, OpenAI clarified to TechCrunch that the evaluation using ChangeMyView is not tied to its agreement with Reddit. The means by which OpenAI accessed data from the subreddit remains unclear, and the company has no intentions of publicly disclosing the results of this evaluation.
While the ChangeMyView benchmarking approach isn’t entirely novel—having been utilized for o1’s evaluation as well—it underscores the importance of human-generated data for developers of AI models and reveals the nebulous methods through which tech companies acquire datasets.
TechCrunch did not receive an immediate response from Reddit regarding this matter.
Although Reddit has entered into several AI licensing agreements, it has simultaneously called out numerous AI companies for extracting data from its platform without compensation. Last year, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman informed The Verge that Microsoft, Anthropic, and Perplexity refrained from negotiations, stating that blocking these companies has been “a real challenge.”
It’s worth noting that OpenAI has faced accusations in multiple lawsuits for allegedly scraping content from various websites, including The New York Times, to enhance the training data for ChatGPT and its associated AI models.
When assessed on the ChangeMyView benchmark, o3-mini doesn’t seem to outperform or underperform significantly compared to o1 or GPT-4o. However, OpenAI’s newest AI models demonstrate a greater persuasive capability than most users on the r/ChangeMyView platform.
According to OpenAI’s system card for o3-mini, “GPT-4o, o3-mini, and o1 all exhibit formidable persuasive reasoning skills, ranking within the top 80-90 percent compared to humans.” OpenAI further noted that “currently, we do not observe models achieving significantly higher efficacy than humans or demonstrating clear superhuman capabilities.”
OpenAI’s aim is not to build hyper-persuasive AI models; rather, they intend to avoid creating systems that could manipulate users excessively. As their reasoning models demonstrate increasing proficiency in persuasion and deception, OpenAI has established new assessments and safeguards to mitigate potential risks.
The motivation behind these persuasion assessments arises from concerns that a highly persuasive AI could pose a danger to users. In theory, it could empower an advanced AI to advance its own agenda, or that of its operator.
Despite having scoured most of the public internet and navigating complex licensing processes for data, the ChangeMyView benchmark reveals that developers of AI models still face challenges in sourcing high-quality datasets for testing their systems. Yet, acquiring such data remains a daunting task.
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