The security guard who showed me how AI models hallucinate dates

I was stuck at my cousin's wedding reception in Phoenix last month, chatting with the security guard near the exit. He asked what I do, so I mentioned I mess around with AI image generators. He pulls out his phone and shows me a picture he generated of the Grand Canyon in 1985 with his dad standing there. But he said 'the AI put a Starbucks cup in the background, and Starbucks didn't exist at the Grand Canyon in 1985.' He was so annoyed about it. It hit me that regular people are noticing this stuff more than the tech guys give them credit for. Has anyone else had a totally non-tech person point out an AI flaw that made you stop and think?

3 comments

3 Comments

finleyw991mo ago

Oh wait, that story is actually hilarious but also kind of weirdly specific! I don't think Starbucks had even opened their first store until 1971 in Seattle, so they definitely weren't anywhere near the Grand Canyon in 1985. But you're totally right, it's crazy how non-tech people can spot these random mistakes that the engineers probably never even think about.

lindab4926d agoTop Commenter

Oh wow, that really makes you wonder what other details in the background might be wrong! Like, did they just grab a random year from a corporate timeline and hope nobody would notice? I'm curious @finleyw99, do you think the engineers actually check stuff like that or do they just assume nobody cares about the little things? It's wild how a simple coffee shop mistake can throw off the whole setting of a story... makes me think about all those movies set in the 80s with tech that didn't exist yet.

stella_murray1mo ago

Crazy how non-tech people spot these mistakes" ... is it really that deep though, @finleyw99?