The chatbot’s obsession with a select few words and phrases has been documented for a while now, but it feels like ’embrace’ is an anomaly among anomalies.
What is driving the extraordinarily high usage of this word? Why won’t ChatGPT put it on rotation with synonyms such as acceptance, inclusion or affection to help add more variation to its responses?
In our long search for answers, we have found three ‘big picture’ factors which have caused the stars and planets to align for this very unique word.
1. Brand safety
Full credit to OpenAI for developing a tool so human-like that you sometimes forget it isn’t human, but the fact remains it is a commercial product.
Reputation is everything when it comes to the success of your product and brand, which is why small businesses and large corporations alike will go out of their way to please everyone and annoy no one.
How does all this relate to ’embrace’ being a common ChatGPT word?
We live in an era where it’s seen as forward-thinking to embrace new ideas and to be more inclusive of people who are different from ourselves. If your business doesn’t have a plan for improving and promoting diversity (internally or externally) then is your business really fit for the 21st century?
By using a word like ’embrace’ as part of its regular vocabulary, ChatGPT is able to present itself as a progressive, open-minded chatbot.
2. Pattern recognition
Even if the developers did not make a deliberate attempt to give ChatGPT a “woke” vocabulary, it would have ended up with one anyway via the tool’s pattern recognition software for language learning.
As I mentioned already, we live in a time where it’s cool to be open to anything and everything.
Think about the kinds of things which are often proceeded by the word ’embrace’: embrace change, embrace technology, embrace life, embrace the world—these are literally universal mantras.
The concept of change alone is a massive topic which has been written about extensively, especially in the realm of business and psychology. And the outcome of every study and every piece of literature is always the same: embrace change.
A word that carries with it such timely and positive connotations was never going to go unnoticed by ChatGPT’s artificial neural network.
3. Word versatility
‘Embrace’ is a powerful word for a positive action, and it has such wide usage in AI-generated responses that it has become a popular ChatGPT verb.
Indeed, words that can be thrown into any context are real commodities for LLMs which seek to output text as fast as possible while using minimal processing power. Take a look at just how versatile this word is:
- Literal Usage: “She embraced her friend warmly when they met.”
- Figurative Usage: “The company decided to embrace new technologies to stay competitive.”
- Emotional Usage: “He embraced the opportunity to start a new chapter in his life.”
- Conceptual Usage: “The community embraced the idea of sustainability and implemented eco-friendly practices.”
Most of the value is derived from figurative usages as opposed to its literal meaning, which is a style of writing that ChatGPT has really taken to, so much so that we’ve compiled a list of the chatbot’s favorite metaphorical words.
Better still, ’embrace’ has what you could call a monopoly on this specific application of the word, because you wouldn’t ‘hug’ change or ‘clasp’ technology, for example. Sure, words like adopt and accept exist, but they don’t have the same level of intensity as embrace.
Summary
The answer to why ChatGPT uses ’embrace’ a lot is threefold.
It’s a crucial word for orientating the chatbot away from judgemental thinking, which could put off some users and impact upon the brand’s reputation.
It was a common word way before the arrival of ChatGPT, helped in part by its entwinement with terms like change and technology.
And finally, it’s a highly versatile metaphorical word that can be plugged into most if not any response without looking or sounding out of place.