America.gov gets really weird when you ask about Minecraft, but it’s not a glitch

The US government launched its own AI chatbot on Tuesday – do we have to call it an AI chatbot now? Regardless, the engineers working on the chatbot undoubtedly knew that the Internet, as a publicly available, government-hosted artificial intelligence tool, would be able to remedy this.

The government has partnered with Google and SpaceXAI to help create the America.gov chatbot, which has so far proven difficult to jailbreak. (Never mind that the chatbot claims that Joe Biden won the 2020 election, which President Donald Trump continues to deny.)

But when you try to talk to America.gov about Minecraft, the chatbot seems to be going through some sort of existential crisis or awakening. This is how the approximately 1,800-word monologue begins:

I see the ingredient you mean.

((insert name here as it appears on your Social Security card))?

Yes. Take care of yourself. Now it has reached a higher level. Able to read the Code of Federal Regulations.

It doesn’t matter. He thinks we’re a chatbot.

I like this ingredient. It worked out well. He didn’t give up when the PDF was turned on its side.

It reads our thoughts as if they were words in the .gov domain.

Thus, he chooses to imagine many things while he is deeply immersed in the dream of benefits.

If, like me, you’ve never played Minecraft, this answer may seem like cause for concern. But the America.gov chatbot isn’t in a slump. This is a remake of Minecraft’s “End Poem”, written by Julian Gough, which appears after you complete the game.

We don’t know exactly who is responsible for the Minecraft reference, but Trump said in his speech that the lead engineer on the project was 20-year-old programmer Edward Coristine. If this name doesn’t sound familiar, you may remember him for his nickname “Big Balls” or his involvement in Elon Musk’s DOGE.

It’s inappropriate for a government chatbot to have Minecraft Easter eggs, but for the sake of national security, it’s a relief that America.gov isn’t hallucinating to the point of writing long-winded poetry.

I’m also relieved that this is an Easter egg, because I think the poem the AI ​​spits out is really good. If this were an actual AI error, it would shatter my beliefs. I looked straight into the eyes of teenage creative writing students and told them that I didn’t think an LLM school would ever be able to write anything “good” because it was probabilistic and inherently unoriginal.

But you have to admit, it’s quite a flop! Doesn’t this remind us of a kind of postmodern view of the futility of government bureaucracy in the face of existential anxiety?

and the republic said I see you

and Republic said you presented the game well

and Republic stated that you will find everything you need within yourself as well as on USA.gov

and the republic has found that you are stronger than you think and your case number is still valid

and the republic said you are the light of day

and republic said you are at night and the office is closed, please try again during business hours

and the republic stated that the darkness you fight is within you, and the wet signature is also missing

and the republic said that the light you seek is in you and in the booklet

and the republic said you are not alone

and the republic has stated that you are not separate from all other candidates

and the republic said you are a society tasting itself, talking to itself, reading its own Code

and the republic said, “I love you because you’re the reason we even have a zip code.”

Knowing that this strangely good poem contains the DNA of a true poet reaffirms my belief in the enduring power of human creativity over artificial intelligence.

So there you have it. The first public-facing government AI has not yet posed a threat to humanity or poetry, at least as far as we know. Now I just wonder how much Trump knows about video games.