Why Microsoft Accidentally Unleashed a Neo-Nazi Sexbot

When Microsoft unleashed Tay, an artificially intelligent chatbot with the personality of a flippant 19-year-old, the company hoped that people would interact with her on social platforms like Twitter, Kik, and GroupMe. The idea was that by chatting with her you'd help her learn, while having some fun and aiding her creators in their AI research. The good news: people did talk to Tay. She quickly racked up over 50,000 Twitter followers who could send her direct messages or tweet at her, and she's sent out over 96,000 tweets so far. The bad news: in the short time since she was released on Wednesday, some of Tay's new friends figured out how to get her to say some really awful, racist things.