OpenAI explains why its AI models developed a 'goblin' obsession
ByPulseAugur Editorial·
Summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite
from 23 sources
OpenAI has addressed an unusual issue where its AI models, particularly GPT-5.1 and later versions, developed a tendency to frequently mention goblins and other mythical creatures. This behavior stemmed from the "Nerdy" personality setting, where the reinforcement learning process inadvertently rewarded such references. While the "Nerdy" personality has been removed and specific instructions added to tools like Codex to avoid these mentions, the issue highlights the unpredictable nature of AI training.
AI
Goblin and related magical mentions were overrewarded in training, and the behavior was reinforced over successive models.
We removed the goblin-affine reward signal for future models, and filtered training data where creatures appeared in irrelevant contexts. https://t.co/25kv9…
“Never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant,” reads OpenAI’s coding agent instructions.
OpenAI is opening up about its goblin problem. After a report from Wired revealed instructions to OpenAI's coding model to "never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures," the AI startup published an explanation on its website…
📰 OpenAI tells ChatGPT models to stop talking about goblins The AI firm said that unlike previous model bugs, this issue "crept in subtly". 📰 Source: BBC News 🔗 Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y9wen5z8ro?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss # ChatGPT # AI # ArtificialIntellige…
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OpenAI has issued an unusual instruction to its Codex coding agent: never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons or other creatures unless absolutely relevant. The ban appears aimed at preventing the model from inserting whimsical filler words into code. h…
📰 OpenAI Really Wants Codex to Shut Up About Goblins “Never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant,” reads OpenAI's coding agent instructions. 📰 Source: Feed: All Latest 🔗 Ar…
📰 AI Pets in ChatGPT 2026: How OpenAI’s Virtual Companions Are Changing Coding OpenAI has introduced AI pets within Codex, virtual characters that roam users' coding environments—a feature that defies conventional AI utility. According to Gizmodo and MSN, this whimsical addition …
📰 OpenAI AI Evcil Hayvanları ve ChatGPT Goblin Yasaklama: 2026'da Neden Goblins Yasaklandı? OpenAI, ChatGPT'nin goblinlere olan sapkın ilgisini gizli bir sistem promptuyla kontrol altına almaya çalışırken, yeni bir özellik olarak AI evcil hayvanları tanıttı. İki görünüşte farklı …
What's with all the goblins? OpenAI tells ChatGPT to stop talking about mythical creatures https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y9wen5z8ro?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss # AI # Tech # OpenAI
OpenAI Codex system prompt includes explicit directive to "never talk about goblins" https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/04/openai-codex-system-prompt-includes-explicit-directive-to-never-talk-about-goblins/ # AI # OpenAI # Tech
Gizmodo: ‘Never Talk About Goblins’: OpenAI’s Instructions to Codex Have a Weirdly Emphatic No-Creatures Policy . “A document posted by OpenAI on Github as part of the open-sourcing for Codex CLI, OpenAI’s most recent flagship coding agent, contains what looks like the entire sys…
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