A recent interview with OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, contained some fascinating revelations. He provided some fascinating insights into how the company’s operational expenses have been affected by users exhibiting proper etiquette during their exchanges with AI chatbots. As Altman tweeted on April 16, 2025, this amiable interaction is an expensive one for OpenAI. He disclosed that the shortfall totals something like “tens of millions of dollars.” His comments were in response to a delightful user who asked about the financial impact of this kind of etiquette in AI conversations.
Public Sentiment Towards AI Etiquette
The adoption of more courteous communication with AI has quickly become one of the more absurd trends among AI technology’s early adopters. Public sentiment towards AI As Future discovered last December, roughly two-thirds of Americans are nice to chatbots. In the United Kingdom, that number jumps to 71%. Surprisingly, 12% of respondents said the reason why they were polite was because of a fear of future punishment for being impolite.
Altman remarked, “Tens of millions of dollars well spent—you never know,” possibly hinting at the unseen benefits of maintaining a polite demeanor when communicating with AI. This enthusiasm echoes what Kurtis Beavers, director on the design team behind Microsoft Copilot, recently told CreativeBloq. Beavers noted that employing standard etiquette when engaging with AI makes for a more civil discourse addressing AI. With this in mind, this approach supports ensuring AI models output more collaborative, constructive, and healthier interactions.
The Impact of Politeness on AI Performance
Beavers further elaborated on the advantages of politeness, stating that it “not only ensures you get the same graciousness in return, but it improves the AI’s responsiveness and performance.” This view brings to light that these operational costs can be substantial. The return down the line in creating more enjoyable user experiences and AI-augmented interactions will be worth the investment.
Concerns surrounding the financial implications of politeness were raised by a user identified as tomie, who humorously speculated, “I wonder how much money OpenAI has lost in electricity costs from people saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ to their models.” This offhanded joke belies a burgeoning dialogue about user interactions and what they mean for the future of AI and we’re just getting started.
What The Author Thinks
The growing trend of polite interactions with AI models, while seemingly trivial, highlights an important challenge for AI companies in balancing user experience with operational costs. The effort to maintain civility in AI conversations could become a costlier endeavor for companies like OpenAI, but it also points to the emerging need for more ethical, human-centered AI design that values respectful communication.
Featured image credit: ishmael daro via Flickr
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