ChatGPT describes 20 Vancouver neighbourhoods, sparking mixed reactions

The downtown Vancouver waterfront is seen in a Shutterstock image.

When put to the test, artificial intelligence can summarize the neighbourhoods of Vancouver with accuracy—and a little sass.

A local asked ChatGPT for honest, humorous descriptions of the city’s top 20 neighbourhoods and posted the results online this week.

While some areas were described favourably, like “idyllic” Dunbar and “hidden gem” Hastings-Sunrise, others were heartily mocked.

The West End, for example, was likened to “A concrete jungle where tower-dwellers compete for the tiniest patches of grass, and parking spots are more elusive than Bigfoot.”

Teri Smith, the executive director of the West End Business Improvement Association, told CTV News she “absolutely dislikes” that breakdown.

“Did they forget that the West End’s backyard is English Bay and Stanley Park and there are several little pocket park spaces throughout the neighbourhood? It is one of the city’s most diverse, vibrant and walkable communities. And how can we not include the breathtaking sunsets?” Smith wrote in an email Thursday.

In South Granville, which ChatGPT described as “A polished paradise for the well-heeled elite, where galleries showcase masterpieces that could buy a small country,” the reaction was positive.

“Paradise? Well, we love that ChatGPT thinks that,” a spokesperson for the South Granville BIA wrote in an email to CTV News.

“It can be very special to pop into Heffel when they are showing works such as Picasso, Emily Carr or Warhol up for auction, but bookstores, cute boutique shops and cafes are as much of a mainstay of this area. Heels not required to visit!”

The BIA behind Renfrew-Collingwood told CTV News that the description of that neighbourhood is “right on.”

ChatGPT writes it’s a “cultural kaleidoscope with a mix of delicious eateries and oddball characters, where the spice of life is seasoned with quirky encounters.”

The full list is available on Reddit.

I asked ChatGPT to honestly and funnily describe Top 20 neighborhoods of Vancouver
by u/Sea-Practice-2157 in vancouver