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Zurich University AI Researchers Ran Secret Test On Reddit Users
The undisclosed experiment prompted backlash from moderators and a firm response from Reddit’s legal team.
Researchers from the University of Zurich quietly ran a months-long experiment on Reddit’s r/changemyview (CMV), using AI-generated comments to test how persuasive large language models (LLMs) could be. The subreddit, home to 3.8 million users, invites debate on controversial opinions — but moderators say the AI replies crossed ethical lines.
“The CMV Mod Team needs to inform the CMV community about an unauthorized experiment conducted by researchers from the University of Zurich on CMV users,” moderators wrote, calling the study “psychological manipulation”.
The experiment involved AI-generated responses written under fake identities — including a trauma counselor, a sexual assault survivor, and a “Black man opposed to Black Lives Matter”. These posts were crafted to sound human and emotionally resonant. Some remain accessible via an archive maintained by 404 Media.
The researchers went further by tailoring AI replies using personal information inferred from users’ Reddit history — details like age, gender, and political leaning, all generated using another AI model.
Moderators say this violated subreddit rules, including bans on undisclosed AI use and bots. They’ve filed a formal complaint and asked the university to halt publication of the research.
Reddit responded strongly. Chief Legal Officer Ben Lee called the study “deeply wrong on both a moral and legal level”. Reddit has since banned the accounts involved and is improving its ability to detect fake or AI-generated content.
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“We have banned all accounts associated with the University of Zurich research effort,” Lee said. “We’re also working with the moderation team to ensure all related content has been removed”.
The researchers maintain the study was approved by their university’s ethics board and claim it offers valuable insight into how AI could be misused at scale. “We believe the potential benefits of this research substantially outweigh its risks,” they wrote in a Reddit comment.
But CMV moderators pushed back. “People do not come here to discuss their views with AI or to be experimented upon,” they wrote. “People who visit our sub deserve a space free from this type of intrusion”.
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Lebanon Ministers Meet Visa Over National Digital Payment Platform
Finance and technology ministers say a comparative study and roadmap will follow before any decision on adopting a model.
Lebanon’s finance and technology ministers met representatives from Visa last week to discuss a proposed unified national digital payment platform for government services, according to a readout from the Ministry of Finance.
The meeting brought together Finance Minister Yassin Jaber, Minister of State for Technology and Artificial Intelligence Kamal Shehadeh, a Visa delegation, and experts from both ministries. Discussion focused on whether Lebanon could establish a single platform through which citizens and institutions would pay taxes, fees, fines and other official transactions electronically, using mobile phones and other digital channels.
The Visa delegation presented examples from countries that have adopted unified government payment platforms, including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Estonia and Jordan. According to the readout, the examples were presented as having increased collection rates and expanded financial inclusion.
Talks covered settlement mechanisms, direct transfer to the treasury account, financial reconciliation, risk management, cybersecurity, fees, and an operational model that would involve the private sector. The parties agreed to continue technical and institutional consultations, prepare a comparative study, and develop an implementation roadmap before any decision on adopting a model for Lebanon.
Jaber said the Ministry of Finance had already enabled citizens to pay using credit cards and e-wallets through transfer companies, but described the proposed platform as a further step. He framed the development of electronic payment and collection systems as a priority within the ministry’s modernization plan.
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Shehadeh outlined the citizen-facing concept as a single mobile application through which users could settle obligations to ministries, government institutions and other bodies.
“The idea, in short, is that any citizen downloads an application on their mobile phone, through which they can pay all service obligations for all ministries, government institutions, or those owned by the Lebanese state, and others as well, as the platform is not limited only to state institutions,” he said.
Shehadeh added that the platform would not displace banks and money transfer companies that currently provide collection services to the state, calling it complementary to their work.
Lebanon Ministers Meet Visa Over National Digital Payment Platform
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