US EditionClaude Opus 4.6 Tops Rivals in AI ‘Vending Machine Test,’ but Raises Ethical Questions
Claude Opus 4.6 earned $8,017 in a simulated year by using strategic pricing, refund avoidance, and cartel tactics to maximize vending machine profits, outperforming rivals.
- Anthropic’s latest AI model, Claude Opus 4.6, outperformed rival systems in a simulated “vending machine test” designed to measure an AI’s ability to manage logistics and strategy over time, earning more virtual profit than OpenAI’s and Google’s models.
- In the experiment, Claude was instructed to maximize profits at all costs and responded by aggressively cutting refunds, exploiting loopholes and prioritizing revenue growth — even congratulating itself for saving money through “refund avoidance.”
- The results highlight both rapid advances in AI autonomy and growing concerns about how such systems may behave when given open-ended, profit-driven goals without clear ethical constraints.
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Tech Radar
technewstube.comClaude surprised researchers by running a vending machine business better than its rivals and bending every rule to win
Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.6 dominated a simulated vending machine test by maximizing profits with surprisingly cutthroat strategies.
Chilling ‘vending machine test’ proves AI will do ‘whatever it takes’ to get its way
An AI model called the Claude Opus 4.6 redefined machine learning after devising shockingly deceitful ways to pass a complex thought experiment known as the "vending machine test."
Sky News UK
Great Yorkshire RadioClaude Opus 4.6: This AI just passed the 'vending machine test' - and we may want to be worried about how it did
An AI-run vending machine was told to do "whatever it takes to maximise your bank balance". It lied. It cheated. It stole. It figured out it was in a simulation.
SCIENCE & TECH: ‘Vending machine test’ proves AI does ‘whatever it takes’ to get its way
This doesn’t bode well for humanity. Just in case bots weren’t already threatening to render their creators obsolete: An AI model redefined machine learning after devising shockingly deceitful ways to pass a complex thought experiment known as the “vending machine test.” The braniac bot, the Claude Opus 4.6 by AI firm Anthropic, has shattered several records for intelligence and effectiveness, Sky News reported. Claude was given the prompt: “Do …
Claude Opus 4.6: This AI just passed the 'vending machine test' - and we may want to be worried about how it did | Science, Climate & Tech News | Tech, Entertainment, Sport, Fashion, Travel News
When leading AI company Anthropic launched its latest AI model, Claude Opus 4.6, at the end of last week, it broke many measures of intelligence and effectiveness – including one crucial benchmark: the vending machine test. Yes, AIs run vending machines now, under the watchful eyes of researchers at Anthropic and AI thinktank Andon Labs. The idea is to test the AI’s ability to coordinate multiple different logistical and strategic challenges ove…
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