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Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Companys weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. Im Mark Sullivan, a senior writer at Fast Company, covering emerging tech, AI, and tech policy. This week, Im focusing on a stunning stat showing that OpenAIs ChatGPT engages with more than a million users a week about suicidal thoughts. I also look at new Anthropic research on AI introspection, and at a Texas philosophers take on AI and morality. Sign up to receive this newsletter every week via email here. And if you have comments on this issue and/or ideas for future ones, drop me a line at sullivan@fastcompany.com, and follow me on X (formerly Twitter) @thesullivan. OpenAI’s vulnerable position OpenAI says that 0.15% of users active in a given week have conversations that include explicit indicators of potential suicidal planning or intent. Considering that ChatGPT has an estimated 700 million weekly active users, that works out to more than a million such conversations every week. That puts OpenAI in a very vulnerable position. Theres no telling how many of those users will choose their actions based on the output of a language model. Theres the case of teenager Adam Raine, who died by suicide in April after talking consistently with ChatGPT. His parents are suing OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman, charging that their son took his life as a result of his chatbot discussions. While users feel like they can talk to a non-human entity without judgement, theres evidence that chatbots arent always good therapists. Researchers at Brown University found that AI chatbots routinely violate core mental health ethics standards, underscoring the need for legal standards and oversight as use of these tools increases. All of this helps explain OpenAIs recent moves around mental health. The company decided to make significant changes in its newest GPT-5 model based on concern about users with mental health issues. It trained the model to be less sycophantic, or less likely to constantly validate the users thoughts, even when theyre self-distructive, for example. This week the company introduced further changes. Chatbot responses to distressed users may now include links to crisis hotlines. The chatbot might reroute sensitive conversations originating to safer models. Some users might see gentle reminders to take breaks during long chat sessions. OpenAI says it tested its models responses to 1,000 challenging self-harm and suicide conversations, finding that the new GPT5 model gave 91% satisfactory answers compared to 77% for the previous GPT5 model. But those are just evals performed in a labhow well they emulate real-world conversations is anybodys guess. As OpenAI itself has said, its hard to consistently and accurately pick up on signs of a distressed user. The problem began coming to light with research showing that ChatGPT usersespecially younger onesspend a lot of time talking to the chatbot about personal matters including self-esteem issues, friend relationships, and the like. While such conversations are not the most numerous on ChatGPT, researchers say they are the lengthiest and most engaged. Anthropic shows that AI models can think about their own thoughts It may come as a surprise to some people that AI labs cannot explain, in mathematical terms, how large AI models arrive at the answers they give. Theres a whole subfield in AI safety called mechanistic interpretability dedicated to trying to look inside these models to understand how they make connections and reason. Anthropic’s Mechanistic Interpretability team has just released new research showing evidence that large language models can display introspection. That is, they can recognize their own internal thought processes, rather than just fabricate plausible-sounding answers when questioned about their reasoning. The discovery could be important for safety research. If models can accurately report on their own internal mechanisms, researchers could gain valuable insights into their reasoning processes and more effectively identify and resolve behavioral problems, Anthropic says. It also implies that an AI model might be capable of reflecting on wrong turns in its thinking that send it in unsafe directions (perhaps failing to object to a user considering self-harm). The researchers found the clearest signs of introspection in its largest and most advanced modelsClaude Opus 4 and Claude Opus 4.1suggesting that AI models’ introspective abilities are likely to become more sophisticated as the technology continues to advance. Anthropic is quick to point out that AI models dont think introspectively in the nuanced way we humans do. Despite the limitations, the observation of any introspective behavior at all goes against prevailing assumptions among AI researchers. Such progress in investigating high-level cognitive capabilities like introspection can gradually take the mystery out of AI systems and how they function. Can AIs be taught morals and values? Part of the problem of aligning AI systems with human goals and aspirations is that models cant easily be taught moral frameworks that help guide their outputs. While AI can mimic human decision-making, it cant act as a moral agent that understands the difference between right and wrong, such that it can be held accountable for its actions, says Martin Peterson, a philosophy professor at Texas A&M. AI can be observed outputting decisions and recommendations that sound similar to those humans might produce, but the way the AI reasons toward constructing them isnt very humanlike at all, Peterson adds. Humans make judgements with a sense of free will and moral responsibility, but those things cant currently be trained into AI models. In a legal sense (which may be a reflection of societys moral sense), if an AI system causes harm, the blame lies with its developers or users, not the technology itself. Peterson asserts that AI can be aligned with human values such as fairness, safety, and transparency. But, he says, its a hard science problem, and the stakes of succeeding are high. We cannot get AI to do what we want unless we can be very clear about how we should define value terms such as bias, fairness, and safety, he says, noting that even with improved training data, ambiguity in defining these concepts can lead to questionable outcomes. More AI coverage from Fast Company: Harvey, OpenAI, and the race to use AI to revolutionize Big Law The 26 words that could kill OpenAIs Sora Exclusive new data shows Google is winning the AI search wars OpenAI finalizes restructure and revises Microsoft partnership Want exclusive reporting and trend analysis on technology, business innovation, future of work, and design? Sign up for Fast Company Premium.
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Samsung Electronics on Thursday reported a 32.5% increase in operating profit for the third quarter, driven by rebounding demand for its computer memory chips, which the company expects will continue to grow on the back of artificial intelligence.The South Korean technology giant set a new high in quarterly revenue, which rose nearly 9% to 86 trillion won ($60.4 billion) for the July-September period, fueled by increased sales of semiconductor products and mobile phones.Samsung, which has dual strength in both components and finished products, said it expects the demand driven by AI to further expand market opportunities in coming months. SK Hynix, another major South Korean chipmaker, also reported a record operating profit of 11.4 trillion won ($8 billion) on Wednesday, which it also described as AI-related growth.Samsung’s operating profit of 12.2 trillion won ($8.6 billion) in the last quarter marked a 160% increase from the previous quarter, when it said its semiconductor earnings were weighed down by inventory value adjustments and one-off costs related to technology export restrictions on China.Samsung’s semiconductor division posted 7 trillion in operating profit for the third quarter, with the company reporting strong sales in high bandwidth memory chips, which are used to power AI applications.“The semiconductor market is expected to remain strong, driven by ongoing AI investment momentum,” the company said in a statement. The company said an advanced version of its high-bandwidth memory chips, the HBM3E, is “currently in mass production and being sold to all relevant customers,” while samples of its next-generation product, the HBM4, are being shipped to key clients. Kim Tong-Hyung, Associated Press
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Seven people have been arrested in the investigation of a stunning heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris, but the lavish, stolen jewels that once adorned France’s royals are still missing. In the days after the theft, a handful of experts warned that the artifacts valued at more than $100 million (88 million euros) could be melted or broken into parts. If done successfully, some say those smaller pieces could later go up for sale as part of a new necklace, earrings, or other jewelry, without turning too many heads. You dont even have to put them on a black market, you just put them in a jewelry store, said Erin Thompson, an art crime professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. It could be sold down the street from the Louvre.” Thompson and others say that this has become increasingly common with stolen jeweled and metal goods, noting that it’s a way thieves can try to cover their tracks and make money. It’s not like someone could publicly wear one of France’s stolen Crown Jewels and finding a market to sell the full artifacts would be incredibly difficult after everyone and their sister has seen photos of them over the last week, said Christopher Marinello, a lawyer and founder of Art Recovery International. French prosecutor Laure Beccuau made a plea Wednesday to whoever has the jewels. These jewels are now, of course, unsellable Anyone who buys them would be guilty of concealment of stolen goods, she warned. Theres still time to give them back. The jewels may be hard to monetize By breaking them apart, they will hide their theft, Marinello said, adding that these items could become even more traceless if they’re taken out of France and through jewel cutters and robust supply chains in other countries. Still, such pieces are often sold for a fraction of the value of what was stolen due to their smaller size, but also because melting or breaking down high-profile items removes the historical worth. It isn’t a simple process. The real art in an art heist isnt the stealing, its the selling, explained Robert Wittman, former senior investigator of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s art crime team. Wittman, who has since formed his own private practice, said that the individuals behind such heists are typically better criminals or thieves than they are businessmen. Unlike others, Wittman is skeptical about the thieves successfully monetizing the artifacts they stole from the Louvre which include an emerald necklace and earrings, two crowns, two brooches, a sapphire necklace and a single earring worn by 19th-century royals. He notes the gems may still be identifiable by their clarity, for example, and gold that was refined when the pieces were made hundreds of years ago is not as pure as what’s typically in demand today. Because of what they are, theres really no point destroying them, Wittman said, while pointing to the risks of selling such high-profile stolen goods. Scott Guginsky, executive vice president of the Jewelers Security Alliance, a nonprofit trade association focused on preventing jewelry crime, also notes the age and quality of the artifacts’ diamonds. He suspects they’re probably not graded. Its not something that you can move on the open market. Its nothing that can go through an auction house,” said Guginsky, who used to run the New York Police Departments organized theft squad. Given the amount of preparation that the thieves likely put into this, Guginsky believes they have a plan for selling the jewels, even if they might first decide to sit on the jewelry and wait out suspicion. I cant see them stealing it without having an idea what they want to do, he said. Theres always a person willing to buy stolen jewelry. No matter what it is, somebody will buy it. Sara Yood, CEO and general counsel of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee, notes most jewelry businesses implement anti-money laundering programs and look out for red flags like unusual orders, repeated purchases, and requests for secrecy. Still, she and others say the age of some jewelsif broken down effectivelycould actually make it harder to track. Newer gemstones, for example, sometimes carry a laser inscription inside that can be evaluated in a lab. But because these are historical pieces, its rather unlikely that it has those identifying features, noted Yood. Experts like Thompson say bigger gems can be recut to a point that they’re unrecognizable. A challenge is finding people who have the skill to do that and don’t ask too many questions but it’s possible, she said. Whether the people behind the heist had those contacts or certain buyers lined up is unknown. But it’s important to also note that the guys who actually enter the museums are usually all hired hands, and theyre almost always caught in these cases, Thompson added. Chances of recovery look dim She and others say that museums have increasingly faced a rash of similar thefts over recent years. Thompson notes that stealing from storage can go undetected for longer: the British Museum in London, which has accused a former curator of stealing artifacts and selling them online, is still trying to recover some of the 2,000 items stolen. Some past thieves have made ransom demands for stolen artwork overall, or wait for a potential no questions asked reward from an insurance company which can amount to about a 10% cut for some insured pieces in Europe, Thompson says. The jewels stolen from the Louvre, however, were not privately insured. Sometimes government offers of a reward for information about a high-profile heist can also quicken the investigation, although the French government has yet to publicize such an incentive. If that changes, or promising leads are uncovered from the evidence left behind at the Louvre, experts like Wittman note it could increase the chances of recovering the artifacts. Still, as more time passes, others feel that the fate of finding the historic jewels looks dim. I think theyre going to catch the criminals, Marinello said. But I dont think theyll find them with the jewels intact. Wyatte Grantham-Philips and R.J. Rico, Associated Press
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