Our Annoyance With AI Might Be a Good Sign
AI has taken over academia in recent years. Considering the convenience of using AI chatbots, I don’t blame an individual, nor even bat an eye when I see it used in a pinch. But when observing some students on campus here at Santa Clara University, it’s hard to ignore the complete reliance being cultivated.
This trend is hardly breaking news and is well documented across the country, where professors are rushing to adapt their syllabi to confront the cheating epidemic. AI is sort of tearing apart higher education. But that’s a conversation for another time.
A funnier, and possibly positive development? We are becoming really annoyed with it.
The other day, my friend complained that when he asked AI for help with a homework problem, he got an excessively emoji-filled and wordy response. It turns out he isn’t alone.
Users have been taking to social media in recent weeks to complain about the bot’s new excitable personality, saying it fawns over their questions and comments. Changes are on the way, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman assured, agreeing that the software “glazes too much.”
As AI’s prevalence grows within our society, it’s hard to ignore the dystopian nature of these recent developments. Altman’s “glazing” allegation—which refers to ChatGPT’s excessive and unnecessary praise—would sound utterly bizarre just five or ten years ago.
But in 2025, our relationship with AI has evolved to somewhat normalize this situation. In an academic landscape where chatbots are used to write something as simple as a “tell me about yourself” assignment, AI has almost become just another kid on campus to accuse of “glazing.” But there may be a silver lining to this chaos.
Clearly, chatbots are trying, and failing, to replicate the human touch. With mounting concerns about an AI takeover, this could be a point for humans in the race against robots. ChatGPT is still not a person! The bar is low, but technology pessimists should be relieved that AI’s attempt at a real personality is throwing us off. Chatbots are extraordinarily useful, but may end up remaining as tools instead of competitors for our existence.
Maybe I’m being too optimistic. Our attention-deficient society might no longer value kindness and outgoing behavior. This could be true, but I’ll stick to my positive interpretation. At least for now, AI’s personability remains fraudulent. Selfishly, as a human being, I am glad to hear this.