I can’t say that I’m too shocked, but there’s issues with Chub, the website I currently upload AI bots to. I was already aware that having a website for this kind of stuff having its servers in the UK was already going to be trouble. But I could deal with it. It seemed like the people behind the website were willing to make the website as open as possible with the only caveat being related to not upsetting UK law/scaring payment processors, but well, there are problems arising.
It’s one thing when certain regions of the world are blocking the website or blocking certain tags. It’s unfortunate, but it is part of the reality of living in a pro-censorship world, and frankly speaking people from places that are blocking certain tags/the website as a whole most likely already know how to work VPNs to bypass that sort of it.
However, the issue starts to bubble up when mods engage in shadow tagging bots they dislike as NSFL (the main tag for all contentious content) in order to shadowban certain bots from search results with no explanation as which specific tags get the label. Now, I don’t give a shit about being popular, and I already make (and still plan on making) bots with contentious content in them that I know will never be big and that’s fine. The real issue I have here is a lack of proper communication between mods and users, and the general feeling I get that the admins/mods of Chub hate their userbase.
I know this because I was on the Chub Discord server and while I did have cordial conversations with others and was never banned (I left on my own accord), I always had this uncomfortable feeling when interacting with most mods. I don’t really know how to describe it, but I get a very strong “Reddit mod” vibe from the Chub mods. You probably know what I’m talking about when I say that but if you don’t, basically the Chub mods come off as full of themselves and always looking down on their userbase. And well, this is giving me some pause when it comes to Chub.
And honestly, I’m not the only one who feels this way. I keep seeing prolific bot makers either not having posted on the website in months or publicly going on hiatus due to dissatisfaction with the current state of the website, and I can’t say I blame them. It really seems like Lore no longer gives a shit about the website and the mods are getting a taste for powertripping.
Now I’m not leaving the website, mostly because I have no alternative and I still do enjoy bot making as a hobby, but it’s becoming clear to me that an alternative will have to pop up in the future. Will I be able to make the alternative? Doubtful, my life’s a mess and I don’t have the money for such a venture, but I do want to give out some ideas to anyone out there who wants to make a viable alternative to Chub:
1. Don’t bother with payment processors
It’s just not fucking worth it. Given how much payment processors love to bully platforms that make content they find icky, there’s no point in trying to make money off of an AI bot service. With that in mind, a Chub alternative should probably not feature a frontend for chatting with bots and should only feature cards to download. There’s already plenty of frontends and models out there for people interested in AI bots to use, therefore there’s no point in trying to make money off such a platform.
2. Get rid of the NSFL tag
The NSFL tag was originally meant to be a way to tag bots with contentious content in them in order to keep more normie types from flipping their shit over encountering content they find icky. Considering that this tag has now turned into a way for powertripping mods to censor content they dislike, it’s clearly meaningless. And if this alternative is not gonna bother with payment processors, then there is no point to the NSFL tag. You only need to look at a website like nhentai to realize how pointless having a special tag for contentious content is. When it comes to the question of contentious content on this theoretical alternative, users would simply be able to block tags they dislike. Don’t like loli, scat, NTR, rape, or racism? Just block it, problem solved. If that’s not good enough for a person and someone is still upset about contentious content being on the website, then that’s their problem and no one else’s.
3. Make sure the servers are based on a part of the world that isn’t restrictive on fictional content
Pretty self-explanatory. Chub’s servers should’ve never been based in the UK if it truly wanted to be an open platform of all sorts of bot degeneracy. It’s the main reason for most of the more restrictive rules of the TOS. Therefore, if one is to make an alternative to Chub that is truly uncensored, then the servers need to be in a part of the world that’s cool with all sorts of fictional degeneracy/offensiveness. Now obviously, there will still be an issue of region blocking from certain parts of the world, but ultimately it’s up to people from countries with “think of cartoons” laws to get a VPN or find some other workaround if they want to view said content. Again, it’s unfortunate, but there really isn’t anything you can do about it.
4. Have a dev/mod team that openly communicates with it’s users and doesn’t have an ego the size of the Hindenburg
The only way you can communicate with devs/mods on Chub is via Discord, and I’m going to be real, I’m so fucking tired of Discord being the only way to communicate with people on the internet these days. Instead of Discord, there should be a DM system or possibly a forum where users can talk to devs/mods regarding questions, issues, and problems they’re having with the website. Furthermore, the dev/mod team of this new alternative shouldn’t see themselves as grand moral arbitrators for content. If you’re a mod, you’re a janitor and need to stop seeing yourself as something greater. If you’re a dev, you should have a real legitimate passion for the website you’re running. If you don’t, you should stop running the site and hand the reigns to someone else instead of turning the website into a zombie platform. Discord is terrible and only encourages circlejerking and high school clique bullshit.
5. An uncensored AI bot website needs to allow everything, no exceptions
I don’t think I have to explain this one further, but I guess I do. If you’re planning on making yourself the next uncensored AI bot website, then that means everything in the realm of fictional degeneracy should be allowed. This means you should allow bots that contain loli/shota, incest, furry, NTR, guro, woke politics, anti-woke politics, and other such contentious content. The only exception I’d make on this is that I would personally not allow for using real life images or overly realistic 3DCG renders for bot images. Other than that, everything should be fair game. If you don’t like the idea of allowing a platform where people can post bots you find offensive, then you shouldn’t be running such a platform, period.
And that’s it really. I don’t have much more to add on this topic. If you have more you’d like to bring up, contact me at NiwaNiwason@proton.me
