Researchers find evidence of ChatGPT buzzwords turning up in everyday speech

Summary

“This research focuses on a central issue in the discourse surrounding AI and language: are these language changes happening because we’re using a tool and repeating what it suggested or is language changing because AI is influencing the human language system?” said assistant professor of computational linguistics and principal investigator Tom Juzek. “By analyzing lexical trends before and after ChatGPT was released in 2022, we found a convergence between human word choices and LLM-associated patterns with AI buzzwords.” While rapid increases in the use of certain words — like Omicron — do occur, these increases are typically due to real-world events. Recent large-scale upticks in the use of words like “delve” and “intricate” in certain fields, especially education and academic writing, are attributed to the widespread introduction of LLMs with a chat function, like ChatGPT, that overuses those buzzwords. “The changes we are seeing in spoken language are pretty remarkable, especially when compared to historical trends,” Juzek said. “What stands out is the breadth of change: so many words are showing notable increases over a relatively short period. Given that these are all words typically overused by AI, it seems plausible to conjecture a link.” Words including “surpass,” “boast,” “meticulous,” “strategically,” and “garner” have also seen considerable increases in usage since the release of ChatGPT. While these words are often used in a formal or academic tone, which makes them less common in unscripted, spoken language, researchers found that nearly three-quarters of these target words showed increased usage with some more than doubling in frequency. From left: Bryce Anderson, Riley Galpin and Tom Juzek. Photo by Devin Bittner/FSU College of Arts and Sciences. The team, including Bryce Anderson, a rising senior majoring in computer science, and Riley Galpin, a rising junior double-majoring in computer science and pure mathematics, analyzed 22.1 million words from ...