[kenni]

I don’t believe debate is an effective means of changing people’s minds. So I debated the AI on this.

Directly arguing (I.e., debating) was ineffective but thanking it for acknowledging my points and asking it to elaborate on “what alternatives to debating are better?” lead to it arguing on my side. This probably says more about ChatGPT and its training than anything about the nature of debate. Though it’s a good illustration of how working with someone’s values (pleasing users in their case) is more effective than trying to engage directly with the logic of their arguments.

Interestingly, the AI judge said the AI won the debate, despite it swapping to my side!