Analysis of Beliefs Acquired from a Conversational AI: Instruments-based Beliefs, Testimony-based Beliefs, and Technology-based Beliefs

Abstract Speaking with conversational AIs, technologies whose interfaces enable human-like interaction based on natural language, has become a common phenomenon. During these interactions, people form their beliefs due to the say-so of conversational AIs. In this paper, I consider, and then reject, the concepts of testimony-based beliefs and instrument-based beliefs as suitable for analysis of beliefs acquired from these technologies. I argue …