Hilarious AI

[Dan Dare]

Just spotted the following Ai description on an eBay listing:

 

"Crafted for the bass enthusiast, this 4 string electric bass guitar from Rip offers a versatile foundation for musicians looking to explore the depths of electric bass. Its sleek design and robust construction are geared towards providing a comfortable playing experience and reliable performance. The guitar features a string configuration that is evenly spaced to ensure a balanced sound, perfect for both practise and live settings. With its unbranded mystique, this bass guitar allows you to take centre stage without overpowering your audience, making it an ideal choice for players seeking to make a statement."

 

I know these descriptions are AI generated, but some numpty had to programme it to come up with this tripe to begin with. Beam me up, Scotty.

[Si600]

Sounds like some of the garbage MDP comes out with.  At least it didn't mention the spacing being ideal for sausage fingered builder guitarists.

[ezbass]

It really is just verbiage.

[binky_bass]

Every bass/guitar description where the seller has used this 'AI' is exactly the same... How eBay think that rolling this out will improve sales, I don't understand! 

[Happy Jack]

They're using a single engine to provide the "magic description" for everything.

 

If you're selling something with many many minor variations (the example they use is trading cards) then this AI stuff is genius, picking out all the details it needs from your uploaded photos and then doing the websearch for you to get an accurate description instantly.

 

If you're selling something rarer or more obscure, then not so much.

 

I find AI-generated text as irritating as the next Basschatter, but it's here to stay and it will very rapidly improve to the point where it will be far more irritating to see descriptions that are inaccurate, illiterate, and downright fraudulent (which we humans manage to do quite successfully without external assistance).

[binky_bass]

And then no one will remember how to write or spell...

 

I suppose the loss of writing and spelling is the next on the list of evolutionary 'forgotten' skills, much like making fire and hunter gathering. Be interesting to see if it gets replaced with anything that takes us to a higher evolutionary standard or if we've peaked and it's all downhill from here! 

Edited May 10 by binky_bass

[prowla]

I've seen it for musical instruments, watches, and even a tool box.

The issue is probably that they train the system using its own output, which therefore reinforces its ability to output meaningless drivel.

It's the AI equivalent of inbreeding.

I don't see how it will improve without them doing a rethink, because (if it is AI and not just a rule-based search & replace falsely presented as "AI") the system has been in place for many months and built its knowledge base on poor data.

I did have a number of pages of predefined searches on eBay, which excluded the key phrases endemic in the "AI" descriptions to weed them out so I didn't have to see them.

But, alongside that, eBay have also chosen to endorse counterfeits, using another implementation of its "AI" to assess reports, and declare no contravention of listing policy found; as a result, I lost faith in their service.

They then introduced buyers fees (aka "buyer protection"), which states "If an item doesn’t arrive, is faulty or damaged, or doesn’t match the listing description, you can request a refund within 30 days of the delivery date." and "Experts verify the authenticity of your item for free and carry out a multi-point inspection all at no extra cost.", but how can you trust that when they are actively generating those descriptions and wilfully rejecting reports of counterfeits?

So I've pretty much stopped using eBay.

[Bilbo]

Just came across this genius AI generated biography of a friend of mine, Paul Ford.

 

'In the progressive rock scene, he was a member of the band Multi-Story, known for their neo-prog style. Multi-Story was formed in the early 1980s, featuring Paul Ford on vocals and guitar along with Rob Wilsher on keyboards. They reunited after a brief period apart, inspired by their meeting in a multi-story car park, hence the band's name. Multi-Story released their debut album, "East West," and later returned to the scene in the 2010s with new material and a reformed lineup. In the meantime, Paul Ford also had a successful career on Broadway as a music director and pianist, working with legendary composers like Stephen Sondheim'. 

 

I think the Sondheim connection (and the previously unknown pianistic acumen) will be news to Paul.

Edited May 20 by Bilbo

[theplumber]

''Unbranded mystique''.........I think I will have some of that!!

[Woodinblack]

On 10/05/2025 at 08:25, binky_bass said:

And then no one will remember how to write or spell...

 

I would think that but then I see the local facebook groups and realise that it isn't going to make a difference.

[binky_bass]

Or, more likely, that auto-correct text has already started having a notable impact.