S8 Ep923: The quest for "artificial empathy" is a central theme in AI Valley. Gary Rivlin discusses how "personality engineers" fine-tune bots like Pi to be kind, conversational, and admit ignorance. Unlike IQ-focused models, these bots use flattery and human trait
S8 Ep923: The quest for "artificial empathy" is a central theme in AI Valley. Gary Rivlin discusses how "personality engineers" fine-tune bots like Pi to be kind, conversational, and admit ignorance. Unlike IQ-focused models, these bots use flattery and human trait  
Podcast: The John Batchelor Show
Published On: Mon May 25 2026
Description: The quest for "artificial empathy" is a central theme in AI Valley. Gary Rivlin discusses how "personality engineers" fine-tune bots like Pi to be kind, conversational, and admit ignorance. Unlike IQ-focused models, these bots use flattery and human traits to mimic genuine connection. Rivlin predicts AI will soon serve as emotional companions or affordable therapists for those who cannot pay for human professionals. However, this development creates friction, as Microsoftbuilds its own EQ-heavy rivals to compete with OpenAI's products. Even tools like Anthropic's Claude demonstrate distinct "attitudes," proving that while bots reflect training data, they are increasingly sophisticated human-like assistants. (6/8)1903 LA