Local student Millie Houlton was issued a parking ticket by the city of York City, UK, which she successfully challenged using ChatGPT, an AI-based chatbot.
Millie Houlton. Image Source: BBC
The fine of £60 ($74) was written out completely inopportunely – Millie had a large academic load at that moment: the girl is in her last year at York St. John University. Therefore, by her own admission, she already wanted to pay it off and not waste time and effort writing a letter to protest the fine. However, the punishment was imposed clearly unlawfully – the student paid for parking on her street for two years in advance. It was difficult for her to try to formulate her position for the official department, so she decided to resort to the help of artificial intelligence.
The OpenAI company that developed ChatGPT warned users that the system sometimes gives plausible, but incorrect or meaningless answers, but this did not stop the girl. She gave the AI all the data: where and when it happened, why it was wrong, “and in a matter of minutes it returned with a perfectly crafted personalized response.” The answer said that she was a student, that she had a permit paid for two years in advance, and she was not going to park where it was forbidden. As a result, the city authorities canceled the fine.
It was not the first time she resorted to the help of AI. Millie is studying to be an event planner and business manager. The platform helped her organize an Easter egg hunt at a local running club. She told the AI that it was an Easter event, indicated the places where she would like to hide the eggs, and the system made up the necessary clues and riddles for her.
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