I recently heard about this topic from my dd's fiance. It's been known and presumed that a lot of what's online now is bot driven.  That theory was blown wide open when Twitter was in the process of being sold to Elon Musk. 

In the dead internet theory, the theory proposes that a high percentage of internet activity is through bots that are driven by algorithmic generators, and the content is highly manipulating affecting the few humans that do use the internet. 

Personally, if that was true, then I highly propose more people would enjoy niche websites where they know there isn't any algorithms or AI being used. What's the attraction to large social websites with bots for content?

Tech's is an authentic human driven website with real human members that come together for real chat on a variety of topics.  Why would you want to talk to a bot?

Maybe there's another side of it that's intriguing? Lately, Chatgbt has been an experiment in my house for highly technical information. The speed in which the information was delivered was pretty amazing.  Chatgbt, however, is not like a bot writing content, so maybe this is a little different type of interaction?  Can you tell if you are interacting with a bot online in a discussion? 

I can usually tell if I'm talking to a chat bot because they keep asking me the same questions when they don't understand what I'm asking! I simply won't entertain them anymore, especially dealing with bills and the NHS website online. You simply cannot replace true customer service with a bot!

I agree, I miss true customer service too.  At my local pharmacy, no one picks up anymore.  You have to leave a message for them to call you back.  It's extremely annoying, because sometimes it's hours before they call back.  They also have this really long message you have to endure before you can leave your message too.....and they wander why they might be going bankrupt.

Same here with bills or particularly my health insurance company.  I absolutely dread calling my health insurance company over an EOB (explanation of benefits) because it takes so long to get to a real person. 

Agreed, even phoning companies now you get a long list of options usually with a long winded message, then you have to wait ages to speak to some one!

And the chat bot services these companies have are just so frustrating and a complete waste of time!

I feel sorry for the older generation when it comes to things like this, some elderly people don't even know what the internet is, or what a smartphone is so they rely on their land based phones but it must be so frustrating for some of them especially if they are house bound, on there own or maybe no relatives to help!

It IS exhausting, going through all of those options.  Who's working for whom?  I feel like I'm doing all of their work now.

My mom has issues with the technology today.  She is especially challenged with doctor office's and their new online paper work, or the billing that's sent through a portal instead of the customary paper bill send a la' snail mail.  Sometimes, even real life check in is an issue at doctor's offices.  Some offices have gone to a kiosk type system, where you don't even check in at the front desk, you check in at a little touch screen before you sit down.  Who ever came up with that and thought it was okay for the elderly or infirm? Good grief!

Have you noticed too that the ability to communicate with a real person is often well hidden, back in the day any letter from a company would have full contact details, nowadays letters are often bereft of any information, no address, no phone, often no email address, just a www address.  Going off topic a wee bit but along with this coercion for the customer to resolve their own problems via FAQs etc I think quality control is now a customer complaining, admittedly many things are quite reliable now but I am convinced the quality control is now customers returning faulty items.

@Geffers, yes I have noticed how hard it is to communicate an issue with a real person at a business.....some of it is a human issue, whereas the humans hide behind their voice mail and call you back when they feel like it, the other is that most businesses seemed to be very satisfied to cut down on human staff and use an answering system. 

Like you, I've also noticed it is extremely hard to verify the "about" part of a website business before a purchase and if you need customer service at any website, you will struggle to find a phone number to call, as I've found there isn't one most of the time.  Everything is done through a content form.  The content forms, I've found rarely are set up right.  Most of them don't ping the right department in the business or fail to ping/send your message at all.  Next is finding an email....the struggles.  I won't buy online anymore, unless the business is completely transparent.

So agreed, "quality control" is out the door.

Have you found too that they will often answer a question you never asked and sidestep your original question and then have to go through the entire explanation again....

Yessss....and I often think that they are reading from a pre-made script/cue card of talking points that "they" are required to ask while they have you captive on the phone.   Oh and repeating everything again is insane....and...and...after you've done that twice, then "they" say, "oh, well I can't help you with that, it's not my department, I'll have to get you to another department, would you please hold a moment while I transfer you."  In you British word, crikey!! 

I recently went through that experience when I was trying to set up some specific banking.  This phone call, was one of many that took a span of two weeks getting from one department to another, dealing with the emails, explaining again what I needed, setting it all up and then for me to tell them, that won't work because the bank missed the main point from the very beginning of what I needed.  Omg!!

Hi,

I came across this news article today, thought you might like it?

AI systems could be on the verge of collapsing into nonsense, scientists warn

https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/ai-chatgpt-artificial-intelligence-nonsense-b2586279.html