Discord Joins AI Craze with New Conversation Summarizer and Avatar Remix App

Discord, the chat app originally designed for gamers, has announced plans to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) technology into its platform.  The company will introduce an AI chatbot, an automated AI moderator, a conversation summarizer, an avatar remixer, and a whiteboard. Some features began rolling out on March 9th, with others set to launch in the coming weeks and months. The third-party AI apps already on the platform already have more than 30 million monthly users, and nearly 3 million servers on Discord have some AI element integrated into the community.

AI Integration on Discord

Midjourney, a text-to-image AI project allowing users to generate art within their Discord server, boasts the largest Discord community, with more than 13 million members. Discord’s first AI feature to be introduced is AutoMod AI, which will be able to search the server and alert moderators when it thinks rules are being broken. Discord has integrated OpenAI-powered AI into the AutoMod feature, allowing it to consider the context of a conversation. The Clyde bot is also getting an AI upgrade and will be able to answer questions from users. Discord has also launched an “AI incubator” to support developers creating AI-powered apps on the platform.

Privacy Concerns

However, the introduction of AI features has raised concerns among users over potential privacy violations. As TechRadar reported, Discord’s new privacy policy tells a different story, particularly as previously published clauses have been removed in the updated version. Although Discord claims Clyde doesn’t record, store, or use any voice or video call data, the absence of privacy protection clauses in the new policy means users’ data is no longer safeguarded from any AI program the company decides to add to its service. This could potentially cause harm to users, particularly as civil liberties may take a backseat as governments rush to legislate for Artificial Intelligence.

AI-Powered Chatbot and Other Features

Discord has teamed up with OpenAI to upgrade its existing Clyde bot, turning it into a conversational chatbot powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology. Users can ask questions and summon the bot to send GIFs, recommend music, and more. Discord is also experimenting with an AI-powered prototype whiteboard and an avatar remix app. In addition, an AI-generated conversation summaries feature has been rolled out on an opt-in basis.

Discord AI Incubator

Discord is launching an “AI incubator” that offers support to developers creating AI-powered apps on Discord. Developers can access cash grants, cloud compute credits, and early access to Discord platform features, as well as help from Discord’s development teams.

AutoMod AI

Discord’s autonomous moderation tool, AutoMod, is being upgraded with AI technology from OpenAI. The AI-powered version of AutoMod will more accurately process the context of a message to identify whether a user is trying to break server rules.

Experimentation and Risk

While Discord is confident about the potential of AI on its platform, concerns about the technology’s reliability and potential for misuse are very real. As seen with Microsoft’s AI-powered Bing chatbot, there is a risk of generating false information or inappropriate responses. With the increasing integration of AI into apps and platforms, it is crucial to address these concerns and prioritise user privacy and safety. Only time will tell if companies will prioritise profit over these concerns.

This time the hype is real and AI is here to stay

As more and more apps and platforms introduce AI into their features, it’s clear that AI is here to stay. However, concerns about privacy and other potential risks remain. As technology continues to advance and evolve, it’s up to companies and regulators to ensure that the benefits of AI are maximised while also mitigating any negative effects. Only time will tell how this balance will play out but it’s crucial that we prioritise responsible and ethical AI development to ensure a better future for all. Unlikely? Yes but we can only hope…