Sergey Brin’s Surprising AI Statement Sparks Debate in the Tech World
A few weeks ago, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared a surprising insight with the AI community: users saying words like “please” and “thank you” to ChatGPT are costing the company millions of dollars in extra electricity bills. While this may sound bizarre, many AI professionals have supported the idea that polite prompts can sometimes lead to better-quality responses from large language models.
Sergey Brin Thinks the Opposite — And Says It Out Loud
In a recent appearance on the All-In Podcast, Google co-founder Sergey Brin made a shocking and controversial statement that goes against the common belief in AI-human interaction.
“It’s a weird thing… Not just our models, but all models tend to do better if you threaten them, like with physical violence,” Brin said.
He continued, saying, “People feel weird about that, so we don’t really talk about it. Historically, you’d say something like, ‘I’m going to kidnap you if you don’t [do this]…”
While it’s likely that Brin’s comment was made in a sarcastic tone, the statement raised eyebrows and reignited discussions about how AI models interpret human behavior and prompts.
Sergey Brin’s Return to the AI Frontlines
Brin, who had stepped away from his role at Google and Alphabet, has recently re-entered the scene to work on Google’s Gemini AI model. Speaking to Big Technology, he explained why now is a critical time to be involved in artificial intelligence: “Honestly, anybody who’s a computer scientist should not be retired right now. There’s never been a greater mix of problems and opportunities.”
Google’s Big Comeback in the AI Race
Brin also appeared alongside Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis during the Google I/O 2025 conference. His appearance symbolized Google’s renewed commitment to AI innovation.
Back in late 2022, when OpenAI launched ChatGPT, Google was caught off guard. But in the years since, the company has:
- Rapidly scaled its AI efforts
- Launched the Gemini model to compete with ChatGPT
- Integrated AI across nearly all Google products
Now, Google is once again positioned as a leading competitor in the AI arms race.
Key Takeaways
- Sam Altman revealed that users’ polite prompts to ChatGPT are driving up power costs.
- Some experts believe politeness leads to better AI responses.
- Sergey Brin, however, controversially joked that threats get better results.
- Brin is now actively working on Google’s Gemini AI, signaling his return to the tech world.
- Google is making a strong comeback in AI after falling behind OpenAI in 2022.