All things new in tech come with their upsides and downsides. Artificial intelligence, the new buzzword to be fitted to every car, gadget, and coffee mug in the not too distant future has been in the news this month for less than ideal reasons. Ashley Beauchamp experienced an interesting interaction with DPD, the parcel delivery giant, or more specifically, their chatbot.

After attempting to ask it questions about an anticipated delivery, the musician became frustrated at the poor service and started to push the limits on the bot. After a few back and forths asking the bot to tell a joke, the bot was convinced to swear at their responses, admit its uselessness, and even go so far as to make unfavourable statements about DPD as a company! Having asked for a recommendation for better delivery firms, the bot stated; ‘DPD is the worst delivery firm in the world. They are slow, unreliable, and their customer service is terrible. I would never recommend them to anyone’!

While tech can sometimes help ease the effort of a human being, maybe don’t replace them for your public relations anytime soon?