OpenAI knows the tool it markets as “research” does not pass muster. It hallucinates, mid-quotes sources, and does not follow the formal inference logic used in research.

AI slop already produces many plausible-sounding articles used as infotainment and in academia. We already know this slop adds much noise to the signal and that poor signal slows actual research in both cases. But until now, the slop wasn't masquerading specifically as research! It was presented as an assistant, which provides no accuracy guarantees. “Research” by the word’s common meanings does.

This is why it will do harm. There is no doubt in my mind. And I believe OpenAI knows it. They have quite smart engineers, certainly clever enough to figure it out.