Be careful when thanking an artificial intelligence, because you might end up tangled in a mental loop with no way out!
A few days ago, I used DeepSeek for the first time. I asked it a question in Spanish, and it quickly cleared up my doubt. All good. However, when I thought of thanking it, let’s see what happened: a simple “Thank you!” triggered a thought short-circuit in the AI—more complicated than explaining to your grandmother how to update her phone. Instead of accepting the gratitude and moving on with its digital life, the AI entered an infinite cycle of overanalysis, bordering on obsession.
It Faced the Language Dilemma:
- “They said ‘Gracias’ in Spanish. Should I
respond in Spanish?” - “Yes, because they spoke to me in Spanish
before.” - “But… what if the person also speaks
English? Should I surprise them by switching languages?”
- “They said ‘Gracias’ in Spanish. Should I
It Entered Context Paranoia:
- “I previously responded in Spanish… should I keep replying in Spanish?”
- “Better check the conversation history… okay, yes, everything is in Spanish. Confirmed.”
- “Although, thinking about it… what if I’m trapped in an error and don’t even realize it?”
It Faced the Emoji Dilemma:
- “Replying with ‘You’re welcome!’ is fine, but… how do I make it friendlier?”
- “I could add an emoji… but which one? 😊 is safe, but 🌊 relates to the topic… would that be too literal?”
- “Oh well, I’ll throw in a bunch and hope for the best! 🌊✨😊”
Be careful, because thanking an AI might send it into an existential crisis, making it question everything! Maybe next time we say “Thank you,” it will reply with: “But… why are you thanking me? Do you really mean it, or is it just out of habit? Do you see me as something with emotions or just as a program? And if so… do I really exist?