ChatGPT is creepily referring to users by their names

18/04/2025 | TechCrunch

Some users of ChatGPT have reported a new and unexpected behaviour, whereby the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot occasionally refers to them by name while processing information. The development is a change from its previous default operation. Furthermore, several users have stated that ChatGPT is using their names even though they have never explicitly provided this information to the chatbot.

The exact timing of this change is unclear. However, it is potentially connected to ChatGPT's recently introduced memory feature, which allows the chatbot to utilise past conversations to personalise its responses. Even so, some users on the social media platform X have indicated ChatGPT has addressed them by name after they disabled the memory feature and other related personalisation settings. 

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