AI-Generated Jokes Outperform Human Comedians, Study Finds

Move over comedians, there’s a new stand-up act in town, and it’s not a human. A recent study from the University of Southern California has revealed that AI-generated jokes are funnier than those crafted by regular people. Yes, you read that right – nearly 70% of participants rated ChatGPT jokes as funnier than jokes written by humans. This groundbreaking discovery has left many in the comedy world scratching their heads and wondering what the future holds for stand-up comedy.

Drew Gorenz, a doctoral candidate in the psychology program at USC and one of the researchers behind the study, was particularly intrigued by the results. As a comedy enthusiast himself, he was curious to see how ChatGPT would measure up to human comedians. “They don’t know what it feels like to appreciate a good joke,” he said of language models. “They’re mostly just using pattern recognition.” Despite this lack of emotional connection, the AI-generated jokes still managed to outshine those written by humans.

To conduct the study, both ChatGPT and humans were asked to write jokes based on various prompts. From coming up with funny acronyms to describing unpleasant situations in a humorous way, the results were eye-opening. While humans came up with classics like “The White Padded Room” and “The dog house,” ChatGPT wowed with gems like “Lincoln Bedroom’s Alien Conspiracy Corner” and “The Situation Room’s Snack Closet.”

But it’s not all bad news for human comedians. In a separate study, researchers compared ChatGPT jokes to those crafted by professional comedy writers by asking the AI chatbot to rewrite headlines from The Onion, a satirical news site. While the results were impressive, with ChatGPT coming up with top-rated headlines like “Local Man Discovers New Emotion, Still Can’t Describe It Properly,” human writers still held their own.

The implications of this study are far-reaching, especially in an industry like comedy where authenticity and delivery are key. As AI continues to advance, there is a growing concern among entertainment professionals about how it could reshape their jobs. From recreating the style of late comedians like George Carlin to potentially disrupting the entire comedy landscape, the future is uncertain.

Despite the rise of AI-generated jokes, Gorenz believes that America’s favorite stand-up comedians are here to stay. “I don’t think it’s able to create a John Mulaney level joke,” he said. So, while ChatGPT may be the new kid on the block, human comedians still hold the power to make us laugh like no other.