It's only inevitable that apps will add an AI assistant as part of their services since it has been rising in popularity. However, as we have seen with Google's Bard, it's not always met with praise but criticism and disappointment, which is what Snapchat is currently facing.
Snapchat Gets 1-Star Reviews
Obviously, users are not very happy with the new update. Snapchat's review section on the App Store has been bombarded with one-star feedback after making its AI assistant available to all users, and not just for the subscribers to its premium service.
OpenAI is behind the AI assistant, powered by ChatGPT technology. Despite the good run of the AI company's chatbot, the AI assistant is not as appealing, it seems, especially since users don't appreciate the fact that it is pinned on top of Snapchat's chat feed.
According to 9To5Mac, the flood of one-star reviews caused the app's average rating to drop to 1.67 stars. In the previous week, around 75% of the reviews were one-star. Many users vented their disappointment on social media platforms like Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram.
Users don't have the choice to remove the AI assistance from their chat feed, that is, if they're not paying subscribers. Those who have Snapchat+ have the ability to opt out of the feature if they wish to, which makes this issue just a tad more annoying than it already is.
To remove the AI assistant chat, given that you are a Snapchat+ user, press and hold My AI and then select Chat Settings. Once you do, you can tap on Clear from Chat Feed. If you're a regular user like the majority of Snapchat users, you're out of luck.
It's possibly and probably likely that Snapchat will change the settings on the new feature, especially since its users have evidently made their feelings known about it. The app might allow users to toggle the feature off on the next update.
Right now, non-paying users have no choice but to be greeted by the AI chatbot every time they open their chat feed. Snapchat has not announced anything regarding the AI feature, nor have they addressed the growing backlash over it.
What Does the AI Assistant Do?
Snapchat describes it as an "experimental, friendly, chatbot." You can ask it trivia questions just like ChatGPT, or advice on what gift to give for your best friend's birthday. It can also help you plan trips or suggest what you can cook for dinner.
Users can converse with the AI, give it a nickname, and even enumerate both their likes and dislikes. Snapchat does mention that the AI assistant is not yet fully developed, which means that it can provide answers that are biased, incorrect, harmful, or misleading.
The AI is trained based on the responses of Snapchat users, and they can provide feedback on the AI service by long-pressing the response from My AI. This lets its developers determine which attributes to update or remove.
