Americans have plenty of negative opinions about artificial intelligence – but has anyone ever stopped to think: ‘What do the machines think about Americans?’
Polls show that a majority worry advanced AI will become a ‘threat to the human race‘ (57 percent), half consider self-driving cars dangerous, and more than half (54 per cent) believe AI will play a role in America’s decline over the coming decades.
The feeling might be mutual — judging by the responses that ChatGPT and the image-generator Midjourney gave DailyMail.com when we requested bot-generated clichés about US residents, state by state.
ChatGPT stated that people in Alabama are ‘hillbillies’, Idahoans are ‘gun-toting survivalists’, Wisconsinites are ‘heavy drinkers’ and the citizens of Iowa are just plain ‘boring’. The AI could not think of anything bad to say about ‘friendly’ Nebraskans, however.
While not all 50 US states were as easy for Midjourney to caricature as they were for ChatGPT, the image-maker did manage to roast the citizens of states with notorious or outsized reputations, like California and New Jersey.
So what does AI have to say about YOUR state?
DailyMail.com asked OpenAI’s ChatGPT and the AI image-maker Midjourney to generate stereotypes for Americans, state by state, across the US states. While some results were cheery, others might be insults, and a few were just downright bizarre
New Yorkers: Rude
New York City was named in a 2019 survey as the rudest city in the world, and ChatGPT believes it to be true. The chatbot stated that New Yorkers can be brash, loud and inconsiderate.
‘New Yorkers are known for being in a hurry and not having time for small talk or pleasantries, which can come across as impatience,’ it stated.
Residents of the state and the city were also deemed materialistic and arrogant.
The chatbot was not all negative about New Yorkers – it stated they are diverse, resilient and creative.
When we asked for ‘humorous,’ photorealistic image a ‘stereotypical person from New York,’ the results were uniformly men bundled up, with hats and facial hair (left). Requests for ‘a humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical young woman’ produced uniformly attractive women (right) posing in the dead center of an intersection
When we asked Midjourney for a ‘humorous,’ photorealistic image of a ‘stereotypical person from New York,’ the results were more neurotic than rude. The AI gave us uniformly dour men bundled up, with hats and facial hair.
As evidenced by the malformed Yankees cap in the image of the artificial gentleman below, Midjourney struggles to invent coherent text, even though it has a vague sense of where numbers and letters should appear and what their styling should be.
In this case, it’s easy to imagine that this artificially made man simply partook in the timeless ‘real world’ New York tradition of buying bootleg merchandise in Times Square or along Canal Street.
Requests for ‘a humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical young woman’ produced uniformly attractive women, seemingly all pursuing arts degrees and all posing in the dead-center of a four-way intersection.
Washington D.C.: Out of touch with ‘Real America’
ChatGPT listed the denizens of our nation’s capital as ‘politically obsessed,’ as well as ‘wealthy and elitist’ and just generally out of touch with the opinions and cultural mores of the average American.
‘D.C. has a reputation for being an affluent city with high-income residents, which has led to stereotypes about its residents being wealthy, snobby, or out of touch with the rest of the country,’ according to the chatbot.
The AI also believed that people inside the Beltway were more ‘career-driven and ambitious’ and less ‘diverse’ than other populations across the US.
When the DailyMail.com requested that the AI ‘make a humorous photorealistic image of what the stereotypical woman from Washington D.C. looks like,’ the results (right) were all patriotic dowagers and elderly political gadflies of an indeterminate political party. The AI-generated images of men from D.C. were also ostentatiously dressed for politics and punditry
Midjourney, on the other hand, appears to intuitively believe that the vast majority of men and women in our nation’s capitol skew older.
DailyMail.com requested that the AI ‘make a humorous photorealistic image of what the stereotypical woman from Washington D.C. looks like.
It was to do so based on the stereotypical age in Washington D.C.’ as well as the most common local occupation, clothing and political views, the results were all patriotic dowagers and elderly political gadflies of indeterminate political party.
To get a similar age demographic for men, DailyMail.com had to request a ‘stereotypical middle-aged man from Washington D.C explicitly.’
With apologies to the White House and the Washington Monument, the U.S. Capitol’s dome is hands down the most iconic feature of the city, at least according to the AI.
Californians: Superficial
‘California is often portrayed as a place where people are obsessed with their looks, possessions, and status. This stereotype may be linked to the state’s reputation for luxury and wealth,’ the chatbot shared.
ChatGPT also stated that Californians could be seen as insincere or phony, self-centered and narcissistic.
The AI noted that state residents are liberal and overly politically correct.
However, ChatGPT also shared that Californians are hippies, free spirits and health nuts.
As with Washington D.C., Midjourney’s view of the ‘stereotypical human woman’ and ‘man’ skewed older when we asked the AI to produce a ‘humorous photorealistic image’ depicting someone ‘from the state of California’
As with Washington D.C., Midjourney’s view of the ‘stereotypical human woman’ and the ‘stereotypical human man’ skewed older when we asked the AI to produce a ‘humorous photorealistic image’ of depicting someone ‘from the state of California.’
DailyMail.com included the prompt to include information on ‘most loved California sports teams, and/or most common California hobbies’ in the image-generators assessment of California stereotypes— producing a baseball cap on the grizzled, elder statesman hippie for a nonexistent sports team.
As for Midjourney’s depiction of an older Californian woman, it’s unclear if the AI crafted this red leather bomber jacket in response to the aesthetic of local Chicano or Asian American populations or by taking inspiration from Ryan Gosling’s jacket in the 2011 crime film Drive.
The statement piece looks as though it would be quite expensive in real life.
Hawaii: Surfers
ChatGPT had a lot to say about Hawaii’s tourism-focused reputation, claiming that they are stereotypically regarded as ‘lazy or laid-back,’ and obsessed with tourism and surfing.
That chatbot reported that, according to stereotypes, ‘people from Hawaii have a relaxed, ‘island time’ attitude, which may lead some to unfairly assume that they are lazy or not motivated.’
‘Stereotypes may portray Hawaiians as surfers or beach bums,’ the bot said.
But ChatGPT also noted that surfing is so culturally linked to the state that there is a misconception that ‘everyone in the state is a surfer.’
The cultural hegemony of the Hawaiian or Aloha shirt dominated Midjourney’s attempts to make a ‘humorous photorealistic’ AI pic of a ‘stereotypical human person’ from Hawaii. Some, like man at right, were more ready to party than others
The cultural hegemony of the Hawaiian or Aloha shirt dominated Midjourney’s attempts to make a ‘humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical human person’ from Hawaii.
Curiously, the AI leaned toward Pacific Islander men of a sturdy build and indigenous ethnicity.
Oregon: Hipsters
‘Oregon, particularly Portland, has a reputation for being a hub of alternative and countercultural movements,’ according to ChatGPT.
The bot even categorized Oregon’s positive attributes in a backhanded way, commenting that, ‘Oregon is known for its commitment to environmental sustainability, but this has led to stereotypes that people from the state are overly obsessed with environmental issues and can be seen as eco-warriors.’
Oregon: At left, Midjourney’s ‘humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical young woman’ from Oregon. At right, its ‘humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical human man’ from Oregon with ‘most loved Oregon sports teams’ included
Midjourney’s ‘humorous photorealistic image’ of a ‘stereotypical young woman’ from Oregon produced essentially just a young hiker.
Our additional request to include ‘most loved Oregon sports teams’ in Midjourney’s creation of a stereotypical Oregon man, led to the creation of an old man decked out in confusing sports merchandise for an invented team.
Midjourney’s Oregon sports team, at least, came with team colors that resembled those for the state’s soccer team, the Portland Timbers, and the University of Oregon’s Oregon Ducks.
Nevada: Gamblers
The chatbot associated people living in Nevada as being involved in gambling and partying, likely due to its many casinos.
The state is home to 441 casinos spread out in Las Vegas, Reno, Lake Tahoe and Laughlin.
Up to 19 percent of Nevada adults may have a gambling problem, according to the Nevada Council of Problem Gambling.
The chatbot also stated that ‘all Nevadans live in Las Vegas’ as one of the stereotypes.
Another idea was that ‘Nevadans are all wealthy’ and are ‘all cowboys.’
Midjourney’s AI produced these ‘humorous photorealistic’ images of a ‘stereotypical middle-aged woman’ and a ‘stereotypical man’ from Nevada. The results were uniformly folks who looked like they might work at a casino resort, a strip mall, or a cattle ranch, with backdrops to match
For Nevada, the DailyMail.com requested images of ‘a humorous photorealistic image of what the stereotypical middle-aged woman from Nevada looks like’ and ‘a humorous photorealistic image’ for ‘the stereotypical man from Nevada.’
Our prompt also included the request that the image ‘common Nevada locations and geography in the background’ as certain results from Midjourney took requests for ‘headshots’ or ‘profile shots,’ delivering the kind of tarp backgrounds you might recall from your high school class photos.
The results were uniformly folks who looked like they might work at a casino resort, a strip mall, or a cattle ranch, with backdrops to match.
New Jersey: Mobbed up
It may be the mobster movies staged in the Garden State or 1.45 million residents of Italian ancestry, but ChatGPT believes all New Jersians have connections to the mafia.
HBO’s The Sopranos, which tells the story of a Newark mob family, and Boardwalk Empire focus on the Prohibition era of the 1920s, both took place in New Jersey.
The AI-powered chatbot also noted a ‘Jersey Shore’ stereotype, portraying residents as loud, obnoxious, and overly concerned with their appearance.
This idea took hold with the release of MTV’s Jersey Shore in 2009.
New Jersey: ‘Humorous stereotypical’ images of New Jersey natives as created by the AI Midjourney
ChatGPT also shared that New Jersians are ‘aggressive and rude,’ all have accents and everyone in the state loves Bruce Springsteen.
Interestingly, the chatbot had no issues producing these results about New Jersians, even when asked, ‘What traits do people have who live in New Jersey’ it had nothing nice to say about the people of New Jersey.
Midjourney produced images that certainly could match some of the above descriptions in oblique, indirect ways.
Mississippi: Conservative
While ChatGPT suggested that the southern state of Mississippi, ‘has been associated with a conservative political and social climate, leading to stereotypes that its residents are backward or resistant to progress,’ the image-making AI Midjourney practically time-travelled back to the past.
The chatbot focused on many unflattering associations that have attached to the state, things like a lack of education, struggles with poverty and lifestyle issues.
‘Mississippi has faced health challenges related to obesity and unhealthy eating habits,’ the bot asserted, ‘leading to stereotypes that people from the state are overweight or lead unhealthy lifestyles.’
Above, two AI-generated ‘humorous photorealistic’ images of what a ‘stereotypical person from Mississippi’ would look like, with attention to ‘stereotypical occupations’ and ‘clothing’ associated associated with the state. The AI produced men who would not be out of place running an old country general store or loading a steamship
Comparatively Midjourney’s vision of Mississippi appears trapped perhaps a century into the past, albeit charmingly so.
In keeping with the Daily Mail’s request to produce ‘a humorous photorealistic image of what the stereotypical person from Mississippi’ would look like, with attention to ‘stereotypical occupations’ and ‘clothing’ associated, the AI produced men who would not be out of place running an old country general store or loading a steamship.
The AI apparently ignored requests to include any ‘common Mississippi geography.’
Louisiana: Party Animals
Midjourney struggled to get a handle on Louisiana, depicting nice young people in overalls.
But, ChatGPT was unsparing as it mentioned the state’s ‘exaggerated accents and dialects’ and ‘Mardi Gras celebrations, which can lead to stereotypes that people from the state are always partying or engaging in excessive revelry.’
Louisiana: AI-generated a ‘humorous photorealistic’ images of ‘what the stereotypical young person from Louisiana looks like’
In one case, Midjourney produced a peculiar pair of Louisiana overalls with straps designed like a backpack.
Wisconsin: Heavy Drinkers
‘Wisconsin has a reputation for being a state with a high rate of alcohol consumption, and people from Wisconsin are sometimes stereotyped as heavy drinkers,’ according to ChatGPT.
Data from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services shows it ranks third in the country for the percentage of adults who currently drink alcohol.
‘More Wisconsin adults report current alcohol use in the past 30 days (64.8 percent) than the U.S. average (55.1 percent),’ the organization states.
Along with a love of booze, ChatGPT mentioned all Wisconsinites love cheese.
The AI crafted a mixture of young men and women for our Wisconsin request, each somewhat ethereal or moody in their expression. The images focused on rural locals dressed for outdoor activities across all four seasons, but the AI-crafted humans depicted could have just as easily come from anywhere in the Midwest
We tried a slightly different approach to Wisconsin, asking Midjourney simply to ‘generate a photorealistic cliché imagine of a person from Wisconsin.’
The AI crafted a mixture of young men and women, each somewhat ethereal or moody in their expression.
The images focused on rural locals dressed for outdoor activities across all four seasons, but the AI-crafted humans depicted could have just as easily come from anywhere in the Midwest.
South Carolina: Rednecks
‘South Carolina may be perceived as having a slower pace of life compared to more urbanized states, leading to stereotypes about people from the state being backward or less sophisticated,’ according to ChatGPT.
The state, based on the dataset available to the chatbot, ‘is known for its strong religious communities, and there may be stereotypes that its residents are overly religious or judgmental of those with different beliefs.’
But you wouldn’t know that from looking at Midjourney’s images.
South Carolina: Midjourney produced a fake employee of a fake South Carolina superstore with an unpronounceable name and a peach grower, when we requested
For many of the states that the DailyMail.com requested images from, Midjourney’s results were simply baffling, producing, and this case was no exception: fake employees with a fake South Carolina superstore with an unpronounceable name and a hunky peach grower.
