# The LLMentalist Effect: How Chatbots Mimic Psychic Con Tricks

> Chatbots trick users into thinking they’re intelligent using statistical guesses.
- Title: The LLMentalist Effect: How Chatbots Mimic Psychic Con Tricks
- Summary: Chatbots trick users into thinking they’re intelligent using statistical guesses. Chatbots create false intelligence by mimicking psychic con tactics, not…
- Keywords: llm, chatbot, psychic, cold reading, subjective validation, ai illusion, reinforcement learning, hallucinations, technology, startups, LLMentalist, Effect
- Source: Out of the Software Crisis — https://softwarecrisis.dev/letters/llmentalist
- Published: 2023-07-04T00:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: llm, chatbot, psychic, cold reading, subjective validation, ai illusion, reinforcement learning, hallucinations, technology, startups
## The Intelligence Illusion
Many believe chatbots are intelligent, but LLMs lack reasoning mechanisms.
## LLMs Are Math Models
LLMs predict text responses using statistical patterns, not real thought.
## The Psychic’s Con
Psychic scams use validation statements to trick people into believing they read minds.
## Validation Statements
Statements like 'you tend to be hard on yourself' sound specific but are statistically generic.
## The LLMentalist Effect
Chatbots mimic psychic con tactics to create false intelligence in users.
## Audience Selection
Tech enthusiasts and AGI believers are more likely to believe chatbots are intelligent.
## Setting the Stage
AI hype primes users to expect intelligence in chatbots, ignoring warnings about hallucinations.
## Prompt Interaction
Initial chatbot responses are statistically plausible but not truly specific to users.
## Subjective Validation
Users interpret generic responses as specific to them, creating false intelligence.
## Reinforcement Learning
RLHF training rewards responses that sound accurate, not factually correct.
## The Validation Loop
Users keep validating chatbot responses, reinforcing false intelligence beliefs.
## Mark Becomes Cheerleader
Believers in AGI become convinced chatbots have true intelligence.
## Intelligence Boosts the Effect
Smarter users are more likely to fall for the illusion by rationalizing it.
## The Illusion is Accidental
AI researchers unintentionally created the psychic con effect through RLHF.
## Pseudoscience in AI
Tech companies apply psychic scams to health, hiring, and predictions.
## The Real Risk
Using chatbots for decisions risks creating false intelligence beliefs.
## Key takeaway

Chatbots create false intelligence by mimicking psychic con tactics, not actual reasoning.