Snapchat Launches ChatGPT-Powered Chatbot for Subscribers

Snapchat today became the latest company to jump on the AI chatbot bandwagon with the announcement of My AI, the social network’s take on ChatGPT for Snapchatters.

The new chatbot on the block is rolling out as an experimental feature for Snapchat+ subscribers this week. According to Snapchat, My AI is powered by a version of the latest iteration of OpenAI’s GPT technology that the company said has been customized for its platform.

“My AI can recommend birthday gift ideas for your BFF, plan a hiking trip for a long weekend, suggest a recipe for dinner, or even write a haiku about cheese for your cheddar-obsessed pal. Make My AI your own by giving it a name and customizing the wallpaper for your Chat,” said Snapchat.

Once available, My AI will be pinned to the top of the Chat tab in Snapchat. The company said that it has trained My AI to follow its trust and safety guidelines, and the chatbot incorporates some of the platform’s well-being tools, including Family Center, Heads Up, and Here for You.

However, Snapchat cautioned that like all AI-backed chatbots, My AI can get things wrong and “can be tricked into saying just about anything” (people testing Microsoft’s “new Bing” found this out the hard way). “Please be aware of its many deficiencies and sorry in advance!”

Snapchat will store all conversations with My AI and may review them to improve the feature. While the company has designed My AI to avoid biased, incorrect, harmful, or misleading information, Snapchat admitted that the chatbot can make mistakes. When it does, users can tap and hold a message from My AI to submit feedback.

“We believe that over time AI can be incredibly additive to the Snapchat experience and help foster deeper connections between friends and how they relate to the world around them,” a spokesperson for Snapchat told iPhone in Canada in an email.

“Our app reaches 750 million people per month, with 75% of 13- to 34-year-olds in over 20 countries. Incorporating this technology into Snapchat’s messaging platform has the potential to make these interactions with AI part of what draws our community to Snapchat.”