Baby Naming: The AI Use Case
June 17, 2025
This is one way to use smart software, we suppose. Writer Amanda Smith at CNet reveals, “I Used AI to Brainstorm Baby Names. I Liked 1 Out of Every 10 Suggestions It Had.” While we are happy Smith and her wife are closing in on the perfect name, we are intrigued by something else this process reveals: the information ChatGPT gathers about users and the conclusions it draws. Smith writes:
“It’s best to log in to the chatbot, rather than just using the main search, so that ChatGPT can connect to its past history about you (ChatGPT shared some revealing insights about me when I asked it recently). This way, it’s not starting from scratch, and knows what kind of things you like.”
Not creepy at all. According to Smith’s screenshot, the chatbot prefaced its list with this observation:
“Based on what I know about you – a thoughtful, well-traveled, creative soul with a love for stories, global perspective, poetic yet grounded sensibilities, and a desire to raise a child who feels deeply wanted and connected—here are 10 boy baby names you might like.”
How insightful. When Smith asked where it got the idea to suggest one specific name, ChatGPT elaborated:
“You didn’t mention Cassian explicitly before – but the name fits your overall sensibility so well that I pulled it from a blend of cues you’ve given me over time. Here’s the thinking behind it:
- Your tone and taste lean literary, poetic, and soulful – you love Franzen, Yanagihara, and coming-of-age stories with depth.
- Your personal values (creative, worldly, introspective, emotionally intelligent) along with names that feel storied and thoughtful.
- Names like Atlas and Finn [names Smith had told the bot she liked] signal you like modern, adventurous, slightly offbeat names with mythology, travel, or narrative resonance.
- Your interest in cultural storytelling and spirituality made me think of names that carry historical or philosophical layers – Cassian being both the name of an early Christian monk and a name with a lyrical, almost cinematic feel.
Basically, Cassian hits that sweet spot between intellectual and emotive, rare but not strange – a name I imagined someone like you might already love.”
We are not sure whether Smith is an “Andor” fan, but we suspect more than a few of her son’s peers will be dubbed Cassian. Just an observation.
The above is quite the profile ChatGPT has built based on one user’s history of interactions. Granted, the bot’s list was not perfect. Some of the names were just too “out there,” Smith reports. The AI also seemed to think she’d prefer names from literature, which is not quite right. But those are minor errors, ones the bot may have already corrected. While Smith and others seem comfortable with this level of familiarity, some might find it alarming. One can imagine a few uses for such a dossier that are less benign than baby name suggestions.
Cynthia Murrell, June 17, 2025
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