[embedding-shape]

> Product managers hate this

Depends on what product they manage, at least if they're good at their job. A product manager for social media company know it's not just about "least clicks to X", but about a lot of other things along the way.

Surely the product managers at OpenAI are briefed on the potential upsides with having the concrete ID for all users.

[xyzzy123]

Making someone produce an identity document or turn on their camera for a selfie absolutely tanks your funnel. It's dire.

The effect is strong enough that a service which doesn't require that will outcompete a service which does. Which leads to nobody doing it in competitive industries unless a regulator forces it for everybody.

Companies that must verify will resort to every possible dark pattern to try to get you over this massive "hump" in their funnel; making you do all the other signup before demanding the docs, promising you free stuff or credit on successful completion of signup, etc. There is a lot of alpha in being able to figure out ways to defer it, reduce the impact or make the process simpler.

There is usually a fair bit of ceremony and regulation of how verification data is used and audits around what happens to it are always a possibility. Sensible companies keep idv data segregated from product data.

[embedding-shape]

> Making someone produce an identity document or turn on their camera for a selfie absolutely tanks your funnel. It's dire.

Yes, but again, a good product manager wouldn't just eyeball the success percentage of a specific funnel and call it a day.

If your platform makes money by subtle including hints to what products to prefer, and forcing people to upload IDs as a part of the signup process, and you have the benefit of being the current market leader, then it might make sense for the company to actually make that sacrifice.

[ralfd]

But the comments here are the proof for xyzzy123 claim:

No one wants to upload an ID and instead is moving to a competitor!

To still suspect that this must be an evil genius plan by OpenAI doesn't make sense.

[embedding-shape]

> No one wants to upload an ID and instead is moving to a competitor!

Comments on the internet is rarely proof of anything, even so here.

If no one wants to upload an ID, we'd see ChatGPT closing in a couple of weeks, or they'll remove the ID verification. Personally, I don't see either of those happening, but lets wait and see if you're right or not. Email in the profile if you want to later brag about being right, I'll be happy to be corrected then :)

[duskdozer]

The average HN user maybe, but elsewhere, I see people uploading their IDs without a second thought. Especially those in the "chromebooks and google docs in school" generation who've been conditioned against personal data privacy their whole lives