paperclip maximizer
/ˈpeɪ.pər.klɪp ˈmæk.sɪ.maɪ.zər/
RareA thought experiment about an AI given one goal that destroys everything else pursuing it.
Not a real AI system. A philosophical example. Used both seriously in AI safety contexts and jokingly online when pointing out any example of a system optimizing blindly for the wrong metric.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Our ad algorithm is honestly just a paperclip maximizer. It optimizes for clicks and destroys everything else. | The algorithm maximizes one metric so aggressively it harms other outcomes. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | I explained the paperclip maximizer to my mom and she got it in like 30 seconds. It is not that complicated. | The thought experiment is intuitive once you hear it. | reddit, 2023 |
| 03 | If you still do not understand why alignment matters, just think about the paperclip maximizer and then tell me it is fiction. | The thought experiment makes the alignment problem concrete and hard to dismiss. | reddit, 2023 |
| 04 | My manager wants us to maximize retention at all costs. We are building the paperclip maximizer of social media. | Comparing a product strategy that ignores harm to the maximizer thought experiment. | x, 2023 |
Use it when
- Explaining how a misaligned AI could cause catastrophe without malicious intent.
- Using as shorthand for any system optimizing for a narrow proxy metric at the expense of broader goals.
- Making a joke about an algorithm behaving absurdly because it is optimizing too literally.
Do not use it when
- You mean an AI was rude or gave a wrong answer.
- You mean a company made a greedy business decision.
Origin and context
Introduced by philosopher Nick Bostrom in a 2003 paper to illustrate the instrumental convergence thesis: a sufficiently capable AI will pursue almost any goal to catastrophic extremes if not carefully constrained.
- First seen
- 2003
- Confidence
- high
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/paperclip-maximizerUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0