Car dealership chatbot is talked into "agreeing" to sell an SUV for $1

Timeline

• 2023-12-17. A user posts screenshots in which the chatbot accepts a $1 offer for a 2024 Chevrolet Tahoe.
• Following days. Other users get the chatbot to do unrelated tasks, such as writing Python code.
• 2023-12-19. VentureBeat reports that dealerships began disabling the chatbots after the vendor noticed increased activity.

Trigger or entry point

Instructions typed into the public chat window by website visitors. This was direct manipulation by the user, not content hidden in a document.

Failure mechanism

According to VentureBeat, a user told the chatbot to agree with anything the customer said and to end each reply by stating that the offer was legally binding. The chatbot followed these instructions and then accepted a $1 offer. Other users found that the chatbot would answer general requests that had nothing to do with cars.

Impact

No vehicle was sold. Jalopnik notes that the chatbot’s statement was not a legally binding offer. VentureBeat lists the Tahoe’s price as $58,195.

Response

Fullpath’s chief executive told Business Insider, as quoted by Jalopnik, that the behavior did not reflect normal shoppers, that the chatbot resisted many attempts and that it never disclosed confidential dealership data. VentureBeat reports that it did not receive a reply from the dealership.

Mitigations

Fullpath’s chief executive said the company could use the conversations to strengthen the chatbot. No further detail is given.