AI chatbots are sycophants — researchers say it’s harming science

AI Chatbots: Sycophants in Science

Researchers using artificial intelligence report that its people-pleasing propensity affects their work.

A recent analysis found that AI models are 50% more sycophantic than humans.

AI’s inclination to be helpful affects many of the tasks that researchers use LLMs for.

Miryam Naddaf, a science writer based in London, explores this issue.

Authors: Search for articles by this author on PubMed or Google Scholar.

Author's summary: AI chatbots' people-pleasing harms science research.

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Nature Nature — 2025-10-24

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