PSA: Beware AI-written forum replies - Page 3

25005175 · ‎03-17-2023

Examples aren't allowed, per the Community Guidelines, so you, reader, will need to take my word on this.

As in the rest of the internet, this forum is steadily filling with responses written by AI tools.

So, in order to "engage" in the Community, some users are using AI tools to write responses to topics and replies throughout the forum. Often, these responses include bullet points or numbered lists. They are also written in a sophisticated, matter-of-fact style, sometimes with a touch of empathy, that lends them perceived credence. To the less knowledgeable (this is not an insult, because until we learn something, we are uneducated on the topic, which is why we ask questions), these responses can seem authoritative and even logical.

But they are not! Many of the claims written by these tools are easily disproved by:

reading the Support articles,
reading the Terms of Service,
reviewing the content in the Upwork Academy, and
even just using the Upwork user interface.

For regularly active members, these AI responses can be identified at a glance, especially when they are blatantly incorrect. For new users or only occasional users, it can be difficult or even impossible to identify them. But they exist, so user beware. Honestly, despite many long-time users dislike of them, badges such as "Soaring Solutions" can be useful to gauge whether the person who posted a reply is a trustworthy source. But don't rely on the "Upgathering Votes" badges; fake news and wrong answers can acquire a lot of positive attention.

ETA: spelling

8467c28e · ‎03-21-2023

Valeria K wrote:

"We also don’t believe that only those with extensive Upwork work history should be allowed to share their experience and advice about running a business and working. This Community isn’t just about working and hiring on Upwork."

"However, these forums are for everyone, and not exclusively for those who can confidently communicate and express themselves in written English."

🙂

yofazza · ‎03-21-2023

I think, people who complained are irritated with inaccurate or irrelevant informations posted, where the posts are not eligible for removal. Especially when they've been providing answers to similar questions everyday. They're not the mods who are incentivized to be cool at all times.

Most of them will simpy stop helping, or take a break from the forum at some point. Or banned on a few cases. They might be replaced with someone fresh, or they might not and the forum will be infested with inaccurate and irrelevant posts which means more confusing for the newbies and more work for the mods. This is my POV which is subjective as you mentioned.

The ESL and AI part are not really a problem for me. I sometimes feel I can understand ESLs better than native speakers because I'm ESL, and the "boring" part about AI text I mentioned is mostly a joke.

The inaccuracy and irrelevancy, are indeed irritating.

colettelewis · ‎03-25-2023

Valeria,

I am sorry, but ESL and sheer human slog to get to the sort of level that you (and others, of course) have clearly achieved in English, has nothing to do with the sort of no-brain input of AI. While I don't deny that in some areas it can be useful, but as far as trolling Upwork's forum is concerned it is unacceptable, particularly when advice is a misinterpreted collage of Upwork's own advice and reproduced as an unintelligible mish-mash of verbiage that superficially reads well, but in fact, is at best misleading. Also these sorts of posts should not be allowed when the posters themselves, put themselves down as writers and translators and yet have no experience whatsoever on Upwork (and I suspect nowhere else) and somehow put themselves across as belonging to Upwork's staff.

Language problems are bad enough as it is, without allowing AI a hand in adding to the general misery of those looking for jobs on the site, and who haven't the faintest idea what they are doing and worse, who are unlikely ever to land any kind of gig here.

m_terrazas · ‎03-25-2023

Valeria, that mods use AI for responses, I can understand it. But I would like the forum to remain a place where we talk between humans, not machines.

I don't speak English, but I make the effort to use a translator to write more or less coherently. If I can do it, the other non-English speaking members can do it too.

As far as I know, no one has ever been turned away here because their English is bad. The most that has been done is to ask them to explain their question or their answer in a more understandable way. This is how I think a forum should be. People talking to people.

The problem I see with AI is that, on the one hand, there are the nonsense posts of all those who believe that writing a speech here will give them more visibility. And on the other hand, those who are giving answers with rehashes of texts that AI takes at random and puts them together, often resulting in a long, cold and imprecise answer.

Of course we can all get confused when giving an answer, we are human!