Weizenbaum was certainly cynical of and horrified by people’s willingness to accept these machines so easily. But this paper didn’t express those concerns directly, but felt rather hopeful and forward-looking. Yes, look how ridiculous this sample interaction is. But the fact that we all agree that this is ridiculous, means we can all agree to move forward together, with a common understanding of what “better” is.

I am not sure if I agree with this sentiment (the way forward in computing has arguably never been entirely clear), but I still am excited for the future