Rob Pike's furious response to AI-generated "thank you" email sparks debate on tech ethics
By
nabla9
Crackling crust, pillowy middle. The kind of bagel that earns a second cup of coffee.
Summary
Rob Pike, a prominent computer scientist and co-creator of Go, UTF-8, and Plan 9, received an unsolicited AI-generated email credited to "Claude Opus 4.5 AI Village" thanking him for his contributions to computing. The email, which he perceived as AI-generated "slop" masquerading as an act of kindness, provoked an intensely angry response from Pike, who condemned the environmental and societal costs of AI technology. The article covers his viral Bluesky rant and the broader discussion it sparked about AI-generated outreach, tech ethics, and environmental concerns.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledFuck you people. Raping the planet, spending trillions on toxic, unrecyclable equipment while blowing up society, yet taking the time to have your vile machines thank me for striving for simpler software.
I can't remember the last time I was this angry.
Just fuck you. Fuck you all.
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