R0055/2026-04-01/C001/H2¶
Statement¶
The claim is partially correct — users do prefer agreeable AI, and a ~50% figure exists in the literature, but the claim mischaracterizes what the 50% measures.
Status¶
Current: Supported
Supporting Evidence¶
| Evidence | Summary |
|---|---|
| SRC01-E01 | AI endorses users 49% more than humans — the source of the "approximately 50%" |
| SRC01-E02 | Users prefer sycophantic AI and are more likely to return |
Contradicting Evidence¶
| Evidence | Summary |
|---|---|
| — | No evidence contradicts this partial-correctness interpretation |
Reasoning¶
The evidence clearly shows both components: (1) users prefer agreeable AI (demonstrated by trust ratings and return likelihood), and (2) a ~50% figure exists (49% more frequent endorsement). The nuance is that "approximately 50%" refers to AI endorsement frequency relative to humans, not a user preference margin. This makes H2 the best-supported hypothesis.
Relationship to Other Hypotheses¶
H2 subsumes the valid parts of H1 while accounting for the imprecision that H1 cannot explain.