Mon Apr 21 19:10:00 UTC 2025: ## OpenAI CEO: Politeness to AI Costs Tens of Millions, But It’s “Well Spent”
**SAN FRANCISCO** – A seemingly innocuous question on X about the electricity costs associated with users saying “please” and “thank you” to OpenAI’s AI models sparked a surprising response from CEO Sam Altman. Altman estimated the cost to be “tens of millions of dollars,” but characterized the expense as “well spent.”
While Altman’s comment was arguably tongue-in-cheek, it prompted debate about the impact of politeness on AI interactions. Some speculate that such politeness is a needless expenditure of resources, fueled by anthropomorphism. However, Kurt Beavers, a director on the Microsoft Copilot design team, countered this view. Beavers suggests that polite language influences the AI’s response, leading to more polite interactions. In essence, politeness begets politeness in AI. The article also notes that while politeness appears to be beneficial, the use of profanity in AI interactions also has its applications, although the specifics are not detailed.
First Piper 