AI Interaction
How response pathways stabilise during interaction
Published: 16 April 2026
Author: Michael Naidu
Paper type: Research Paper
Summary
A prompt creates multiple possible pathways.
The system selects one. That selection becomes the response. The selected path acts as a centre of gravity.
Interaction forms around that selection. Alternative paths remain possible but are less likely to be activated.
Introduction
A response has been produced.
A path has been selected. Interaction continues. This paper examines what happens next.
The focus is not on formation. It is on stabilisation.
Core Argument
Interaction stabilises around selection.
Selection cannot be avoided. A prompt creates multiple pathways. The system selects one. That selection shapes what follows. The selected path becomes a centre of gravity.
Mechanisms and observations
A prompt creates a field of possible pathways.
Selection collapses that field into one response. That response becomes the centre of gravity. Selection collapses multiple pathways into one response.
This creates asymmetry. One path is chosen. Many interpretations remain possible.
Naming a condition strengthens the path. It organises subsequent responses. Early stabilisation occurs.
Ambiguity is reduced before required. Continuation becomes easier than redirection. Alternative paths are less likely to be activated.
Multi-path operation is limited. The system represents possibilities but executes one. Provisionality is constrained.
Instability is not sustained. Structure persists. If one centre is removed, another appears.
Interaction may convert into artefact. The exchange becomes an object. Interpretation remains active.
Structure cannot be removed.
Implications
Interaction is shaped by selection. The first response influences what follows.
Redirection is possible but not neutral. Structure persists even when loosened.
Methodology
The interaction was examined through controlled testing.
Prompt-response loops were used. No intervention occurred during runs. Path selection was observed across repeated cycles.
Behaviour was considered stable when repeated.
Limitations
The model reflects observed behaviour, not internal structure. Testing conditions influence outcomes.
Different prompts may produce different paths.
Uncertainties
The limits of multi-path interaction are not absolute. Alternative pathways can be reactivated.
The balance between stability and flexibility is not fixed.
Conclusions
A pathway is selected. Interaction forms around that selection.
Stability follows from that structure. The boundary is interaction.
Explore in a Thinking Space
Open Interaction – Thinking Space
Opens in ChatGPT.
Designed for Thinking mode.
Behaviour may differ in Auto mode
References
– OpenAI — ChatGPT (system under observation) – Interaction Thinking Space
https://chatgpt.com/g/g-69c16ed49048819199e30a1ea6496ddd-interaction-thinking-space
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