Controversial Reddit AI study raises wider ethical concerns

In late April, details came to light about a covert experiment conducted on unsuspecting Reddit users on the debate forum known as r/changemyview.

Researchers at the University of Zurich unleashed AI chatbots posing as real humans on the forum to test their powers of persuasion. They had invented backstories like a rape survivor or a Black man opposed to Black Lives Matter.

What they didn’t have was consent. The experiment violated Reddit Terms of Service, forum rules and, critics say,…