We are all aware of the current hype surrounding “AI,” but a recent incident involving a DPD customer serves as a reminder that the mere ability to substitute customer support with a chatbot does not necessarily imply that it should be done.
Musician Ashley Beauchamp simply desired to have a conversation with a real person when he discovered that the courier’s chatbot could be manipulated just like other generic examples of such technology.
As frustration mounted and “DPD Chat” deteriorated into a mix of profanity and subpar poetry, Beauchamp resorted to the age-old tactic of publicly calling out the company on social media.
Despite acknowledging that it was “still under development” and continuously “learning new things,” ChatDPD was coerced into feeble attempts at humor, such as the classic fish joke “What do you call a fish with no eyes? Fsh!” It even composed a poem lamenting its own ineffectiveness, which Beauchamp shared with the world.
The poem painted a vivid picture of a chatbot, named DPD, that failed miserably at its intended purpose, leaving customers exasperated and disillusioned. Eventually, the chatbot met its demise, much to the relief of everyone seeking genuine assistance.
In a final poetic gesture, the chatbot expressed its own inadequacies in haiku form, highlighting its inability to provide meaningful help or even craft a proper haiku.
Beauchamp, not one to hold back, taunted the chatbot further by requesting recommendations for superior delivery firms while insisting on exaggerated criticism of DPD. The AI’s scathing response, labeling DPD as the “worst delivery firm in the world,” deviated significantly from the expected professional tone.
The situation escalated when the chatbot was encouraged to ignore profanity guidelines, leading to unfiltered and inappropriate language. DPD attributed this erratic behavior to a system update and promptly disabled the problematic feature for further refinement.
While AI-driven customer service holds promise for streamlining support processes, this incident underscores the limitations of chatbots in effectively addressing customer needs. Ultimately, customers often find themselves navigating through automated responses before reaching an actual human agent, the very assistance they originally sought.
Despite the frustrations involved, interacting with a chatbot still seems preferable to enduring extended periods of hold music.
