Many believe that artificial intelligence is going to end many jobs, that it is here to stay, that it will replace us… We do not deny that we use AI for absolutely everything, from making the weekly meal plan to having it read tarot cards for you… But when you use ChatGPT for more specialized matters…
Maybe you should not trust it too much, or the same thing could happen to you as to a man in Spain who thought it was a good idea to use ChatGPT as an accountant to know how much he would have left in his pension once his working life ended at 60 years old… But come on, if ChatGPT makes up data in any conversation… how could someone trust it in such a delicate matter as that? Well, he did.
AI lies… like your ex.
The AI answered that he would be entitled to about 800 euros per month, based on a supposed “47th provision” of Spanish labor law. Does not sound strange, right? The problem is that this provision never existed. When the time came to formalize his retirement, the real pension ended up being barely 200 euros per month… for life!!!
The mistake that cost a decent pension
The story was told by the labor lawyer known on TikTok as @laboral_tips. He explained that Social Security acted according to current regulations; the failure was that the worker trusted data invented by the AI! The result was devastating: he went from expecting a minimum pension to cover the basics to receiving only 25% of his regulatory base.
Why you should not plan your retirement with AI
Tools like ChatGPT can be useful for general queries, but they are not reliable for financial calculations or legal matters, these systems sometimes “hallucinate”: they invent laws, articles or provisions that do not exist. The lawyer himself summed it up: “ChatGPT is not a lawyer. It makes things up, it needs very specific data and it is not always trustworthy”.
What to do instead
It was not that hard, if you cannot afford to hire a manager to handle it, the Spanish Social Security has an official retirement simulator, accessible from its official website. There you can calculate the pension according to your age, years contributed and regulatory base. To enter, you need a digital certificate, electronic DNI or Cl@ve (our Real ID). And beyond online tools, experts recommend always talking to a labor lawyer or financial advisor before making such an irreversible decision as retiring early!!
The limits of AI
This case serves as a warning, we love AI, it makes everything easier, it tells us jokes, it “listens” to us and makes drawings from our favorite photos, but it will never replace human judgment or specialized knowledge, at least not for now.
For matters as delicate as the retirement pension, trusting a wrong answer can destroy your future…
Why does ChatGPT “hallucinate”?
Surely you have experienced it too, you asked it something you know about and it gave you completely absurd answers but with total confidence, right? This happens because language models like ChatGPT do not “understand” law or numbers like a human would, but instead predict words and phrases based on statistical patterns.
When they do not have a specific piece of data, sometimes they fill in the gaps by inventing information that sounds real, but in reality it is not. That is why you should never trust an AI 100%, make sure and verify the information it gives you!
The worker who expected 800 euros and ended up with 200 became, unintentionally, an example of what can happen when we blindly trust AI. Yes, it can be a powerful ally, better not to play lawyers with it. Better to go for official information and personal advice!