Utterly forbidden or a glowing husk? How hassidic Jews view AI
It is not entirely clear whether there is rabbinic oversight and by what standard these large language models are 'kosher.'
In November 2022, OpenAI – a nonprofit organization – released a free preview of ChatGPT. This triggered widespread interest in generative AI and led to the ongoing AI boom.
By March 2023, OpenAI released its new model, GPT-4 – and the update race began in earnest.
One of the first hassidic groups to respond to the rapid growth in AI interest was the Beth Din Zedek D’Chasidai Square – the rabbinic body of Skver Hassidim responsible for Jewish Law.
Skver Hassidism comes from the Chernobyl Hassidic dynasty. Chernobyl traces its lineage back to the earliest days of the hassidic movement, and this dynasty begat many hassidic courts. Skver is originally from Skvyra in central Ukraine; today it is based in New York. The largest branch is led by Rabbi David Twersky (born 1940) and is based in New Square, Rockland County, New York.
On April 27, 2023, in the lead-up to the festival of Shavuot, the Skver Beth Din issued a public statement that included an urgent warning against what it called “the new service ‘Open AI’ and the like, which could be used via computer, or through text [perhaps meaning phone text], or even through a simple telephone.”
The warning does not explicitly say why OpenAI was deemed so dangerous. At this early stage, its capabilities and potential were not widely known, so at first blush it is not immediately apparent why the religious court was so alarmed.
It seems that the Skver Beth Din assumed that AI was something akin to the Internet rather than a radically different tool. Indeed, the court called the service “an open Internet without any filter,” though those words appeared in inverted commas. Given that AI was perceived as filterless Internet, the court charged that it was open to all kinds of depravities and heresies.
“It is therefore simple,” continued the notice, “that AI is included in ‘the grave prohibition’ against Internet without a filter that has been asserted by the great rabbis of the generation.”
Utterly forbidden
In large bold lettering – for those who would not pause to read the entire text – the notice declared: “The use of AI is utterly forbidden, in any way and form whatsoever, even via a telephone.”The statement concluded with a prayer that God should “guard us with a watchful eye, to purify us and to sanctify us with lofty holiness, and we should merit to raise our descendants as our souls desire, and receive the holy Torah with all the good endowments.” Seventeen signatures were affixed to the bottom of the notice.
One journalist asked ChatGPT (not the OpenAI organization) what it thought of being banned by the Skver Beth Din. It was unfazed by the diatribe, acknowledging that it was powerless to take action against public attacks and, contextualizing the document, responded:
“The ban stems from concerns about the negative impact of technology on the lifestyle of the ultra-Orthodox. It is important to note that each community has the right to set its own guidelines and rules, and it is the decision of the individuals within the community whether to act on these guidelines.”
ChatGPT also reminded users of its role: “I exist solely as a tool to provide information and assistance to users, and I have no ability to make decisions or take actions that would cause controversy within a particular community or group.”
Nowadays, such a ChatGPT response is unremarkable. But back in 2023, Ynet – the online outlet of the Yedioth Aharonot newspaper – considered ChatGPT’s response a newsworthy moment.
Swift ban
The hassidic response to the ban was swift: Within a few days, an enterprising Chabad hassid, Moishy Goldstein, created Kosher.Chat – a chatbot based on OpenAI that was trained to be sensitive to the concerns of the Skver Beth Din.Kosher.Chat was essentially a filtered ChatGPT. Officially, it would only answer non-Torah questions. It would not relate to zmanim – times for prayer. Nor would it authoritatively state what the Torah’s official stance was on issues. The chatbot also declared that it would not authoritatively answer halachic questions, but instead directed users to various online Chabad outlets. Notwithstanding, when asked halachic questions, Kosher.Chat would provide an answer.
Since 2023, other filtered large language models (LLMs) have been released, such as Kosher AI, KosherGPT, and RavGPT. It is not entirely clear whether there is rabbinic oversight and by what standard these LLMs are “kosher.” The underlying theme of these models is that unfiltered LLMs are treif – forbidden.
'Klipat noga'
There is an alternate way of thinking about large language models that is grounded in hassidic thought. Rather than using the kosher/treif dichotomy, perhaps it would be more appropriate to turn to the idea of Klipat noga – a kabbalistic idea given prominence in hassidic writings (see, for example, Tanya, Ch. 6-7, and Likkutei Moharan 1:19 and 82).According to Jewish mystical tradition, there are klipot (“shells” or “husks”) that represent darkness, impurity, and evil. They serve as obstacles that make it difficult to perceive the divine presence in our physical world. Things that are forbidden according to Jewish law such as pork – or LLMs according to the Skver Beth Din – draw their life force from klipot and therefore should be completely avoided.
One klipa – klipat noga, “a glowing husk” – is substantially different from other klipot. This shell has mystically neutral valence that can be used for holy purposes or – Heaven forfend! – deployed for evil. Eating, working, and speaking are all physical actions that engage klipat noga. In an abstract sense, these acts have neutral spiritual significance. Their spiritual destiny is undetermined, until humans decide whether to sully these husks with impurity, or whether they will be elevated so that they glow with sanctity.
It would seem that LLMs could be a classic case of klipat noga – a mere husk that is neither good nor bad in an a priori sense. AI could become a destructive element in the world, or it could be a positive, constructive force that contributes to humanity. The spiritual destiny of artificial intelligence is entrusted in human hands.
The writer is a senior faculty member at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, a senior lecturer at Bar-Ilan University’s Faculty of Law, and a rabbi in Tzur Hadassah.
