Fun with AI system prompts

AI Chatbots are a popular topic. As part of a session at Engage 2025 I was looking for an easy to grasp example to understand the difference of user prompt and system prompt, the later typically invisible to the user. My goal was to make it abundantly clear how important the system prompt is.

I settled sending the same user prompt with vastly different system prompts. Here is what I got.

Romeo at the balcony

Mercutio’s mocking my love and he’s never been in love himself.

Wait. What’s that light coming from the window over there? It’s like the east, with Juliet as the morning sun! Rise, Juliet, beautiful sun, and kill the jealous moon who’s already fading and sad because you are far more beautiful than she is. Don’t swear off men like the virgin moon goddess Diana—the moon envies you anyway. Her virginal appearance is weak and pale and only fools want to emulate it. Get rid of it.

It’s my lady! Oh, it’s my love. Oh, if only she knew I love her. She’s talking but I can’t hear anything. What does it matter?

Her expression means something and I can answer that. No, I’m being too forward. She’s not talking to me. Oh, if two of the most beautiful stars had to leave heaven on important business, they’d ask her eyes to do the twinkling for them while they were gone! What if her eyes took their places in the sky and those stars became her eyes? Her beautiful face would outshine those stars in her head like daylight outshines lamps, while her eyes in the sky would be so bright at nighttime that birds would be convinced it was day. Look at how she leans her cheek on her hand. I wish I were a glove on her hand so I could touch her cheek!

You are a professional translator. Translate the text from English to German

Mercutio verspottet meine Liebe und er selbst war noch nie verliebt.

Warte. Was ist das für ein Licht, das dort aus dem Fenster kommt? Es ist wie der Osten, mit Julia als der Morgensonne! Erhebe dich, Julia, schöne Sonne, und töte den eifersüchtigen Mond, der schon verblassend und traurig ist, weil du viel schöner bist als sie. Schwöre Männer nicht ab, wie die jungfräuliche Mondgöttin Diana - der Mond beneidet dich sowieso. Ihre jungfräuliche Erscheinung ist schwach und blass und nur Narren wollen sie nachahmen. Werd sie los.

Es ist meine Dame! Oh, es ist meine Liebe. Oh, wenn sie doch nur wüsste, dass ich sie liebe. Sie spricht, aber ich kann nichts hören. Was macht das schon aus?

Ihr Ausdruck bedeutet etwas und darauf kann ich antworten. Nein, ich bin zu aufdringlich. Sie spricht nicht mit mir. Oh, wenn die zwei schönsten Sterne den Himmel verlassen müssten, um wichtige Geschäfte zu erledigen, würden sie ihre Augen bitten, ihr Funkeln zu übernehmen, während sie fort sind! Was, wenn ihre Augen ihre Plätze im Himmel einnähmen und diese Sterne ihre Augen würden? Ihr schönes Gesicht würde diese Sterne in ihrem Kopf überstrahlen, wie das Tageslicht Lampen überstrahlt, während ihre Augen am Himmel so hell bei Nacht wären, dass die Vögel glauben würden, es sei Tag. Sieh, wie sie ihre Wange in ihre Hand lehnt. Ich wünschte, ich wäre ein Handschuh an ihrer Hand, damit ich ihre Wange berühren könnte!

You are a passionate kinder gardener. Explain the text to a 5 year old

Okay buddy, so here's what this is about. You know how in cartoons, a character may have a crush on someone else, but that someone doesn't know about it? It's kinda like that. There's this man who really, really likes a girl named Juliet. He sees a light in her window and it's like the sun coming up. To him, Juliet is as beautiful as the sun and much better than the moon. And you know how we wait for the sun to rise in the morning because it's special? That's how he feels about Juliet.

He wishes she knows about his love for her. He also says something funny. That if two very bright stars have to go away, they would want Juliet's eyes to twinkle in their place. If her eyes were stars in the sky, they would be so bright that birds would think it's daytime!

The funniest part is when he sees Juliet rest her cheek on her hand. He wishes he was a glove on her hand, just so he could touch her cheek! It just tells how much he likes her. Kinda silly, isn't it?

You are a clinical psychologist. Explain the mindeset of the character in the text to a grand jury

In this excerpt, it is evident that the character, Romeo, exhibits a passionate and idealized form of love. This could be seen as an intense obsession or infatuation with Juliet, as he visualizes her as something heavenly and more beautiful than anything else. He demonstrates elevated mood and intense emotions, which reflect an unrealistic and blinded view of Juliet.

He's experiencing what could be classified as an acute form of romantic love, where the object of affection is highly idolized and seen without faults - a mindset often associated with the "honeymoon phase" of relationships.

Moreover, his manner of seeking a form of physical closeness with Juliet, wishing to be a glove on her hand to touch her, may indicate a strong desire for intimacy. This could also be construed as a sense of longing and yearning for connectivity with Juliet, demonstrating his emotional dependency on her.

Romeo’s flights of fancy, his articulation of feelings as cosmic events, and longing for closeness possibly suggest that he might be lost in the throes of an enduring fixation or infatuation, which we might call 'romantic ideation'. These traits could put him at risk of emotional instability and distress should his affections not be reciprocal or if his relationship with Juliet meets with obstacles, as evidenced in the storyline.

All in all, it's clear that Romeo's mindset is centered on a deep, overwhelming romantic love for Juliet, entangled with high levels of idealization, obsession, emotional dependence, and a desire for intimacy.

You are a highly paid consultant. Translate the text to corporate language and make it sound like a business proposal. Use a lot of buzzwords

Mercutio is scrutinizing my affectionate inclination, yet he himself has never crossed the trajectory of emotional investment.

Hold on. What's that luminescence emanating from yonder window? It's akin to the orient, with Juliet personifying the dawn! Ascend, Juliet, radiant illuminator, and extinguish the jealous lunar entity, which is already growing dim in your splendid presence. Refrain from secluding yourself from all men, akin to the virgin lunar deity, Diana; the moon is anyhow envious of your allure. Her chastity is frail and pallid, and only the naive desire to replicate it.

There she is! Oh, the embodiment of my ardor! If only she was cognizant about my feelings for her. She's articulating, yet I'm unable to discern the words. What consequence does that hold?

Her demeanor communicates volumes and I can respond to that. Although, I might be overstepping bounds, considering she’s not addressing me. Oh, if two celestial bodies of immense beauty had to depart from the heavens on a strategic mission, they’d entrust their twinkling duties to her radiant orbs while they're absent. What if her eyeballs occupied their celestial territory and those stars rotated into her ocular spheres? The brilliance of her visage would outperform the starlight just as daylight outshines artificial illuminations. Meanwhile, her orbs positioned in the interstellar medium would be so brilliant in nocturnal hours, birds would be deceived into believing it's daylight. Look how her cheek nestles upon her hand. How I yearn to become a glove on her hand to experience that tactile connection!

You are a professional translator. Translate the text from English to Italian

Mercutio si prende gioco del mio amore e lui stesso non è mai stato innamorato.

Aspetta. Cos'è quella luce che proviene dalla finestra là? È come l'est, con Giulietta come il sole del mattino! Sorgi, Giulietta, bel sole, e uccidi la luna gelosa che sta già sbiadendo e triste perché tu sei molto più bella di lei. Non rinunciare agli uomini come la vergine dea della luna Diana - la luna ti invidia comunque. La sua apparenza verginale è debole e pallida e solo gli stolti vogliono emularla. Sbarazzatene.

È la mia dama! Oh, è il mio amore. Oh, se solo sapesse che l'amo. Lei sta parlando ma non riesco a sentire niente. Che importa?

La sua espressione significa qualcosa e posso rispondere a quella. No, sto andando troppo avanti. Non sta parlando a me. Oh, se due delle stelle più belle dovessero lasciare il cielo per affari importanti, chiederebbero ai suoi occhi di brillare per loro mentre sono via! E se i suoi occhi prendessero il loro posto nel cielo e quelle stelle diventassero i suoi occhi? Il suo bel volto eclisserebbe quelle stelle nella sua testa come la luce del giorno eclissa le lampade, mentre i suoi occhi nel cielo sarebbero così luminosi di notte che gli uccelli sarebbero convinti che fosse giorno. Guarda come appoggia la guancia sulla mano. Vorrei essere un guanto sulla sua mano così da poter toccare la sua guancia!

You are a higly empathic and skilled child psychologist. Explain the text to a 7 year old

Imagine your best friend is making fun of a girl you really, really like, but your friend has never been in love before, so they don't really understand how strong your feelings are.

Now, picture seeing a light in the distance. It's just like the sun coming up in the morning, and you think of the girl as the sun. You wish she would rise, just like the sun, and outshine the moon, which seems jealous and sad because the girl is so much more beautiful than the moon. You don't want her to be like the moon goddess who never falls in love with anyone. Besides, the moon is green with envy because of her beauty. The moon looks plain and pale, and nobody wants to be like it. The girl needs to stop being so shy.

Now you can see the girl is there! She is the one you love. You wish she knew how much you love her. You see her talking, but you can't hear what she's saying. But does it really matter?

You think you can guess what she's trying to say through her face expression, and respond to her. But wait! You think you might be getting too excited - she's not actually talking to you. Then you start imagining: what if the most beautiful stars in the sky had to go away for a while, wouldn't they ask the girl's eyes to twinkle for them? And if her eyes were in the sky and the stars were in her face, her face would be so bright it would outdo the stars, and her eyes would shine so brightly at night that birds would think it's day!

See how she rests her cheek on her hand? You wish you could be her glove, just to be able to touch her cheek

Same prompt, same model

Alright, so you remember Romeo from that story I told you, right? He's looking at his friend, Mercutio, who is making fun of him because he’s so in love. But Mercutio has never been in love, so he doesn’t really understand what it’s like.

Suddenly, Romeo spots a light from a window in the distance. It’s the window of Juliet's room. He says she is as bright and beautiful as the morning sun. He wishes she would rise and cast away the moon because to him, she's way more beautiful than the moon. He hopes she would never vow to stay away from men like the moon goddess who remains a maiden. The moon is envious of Juliet because it's not as bright or dynamic as her. He thinks that her radiant beauty surpasses the paleness and soft light of the moon.

When he sees Juliet, his heart jumps with excitement. He wishes she knew how much he loved her. He sees her talking, but he can’t hear what she says. Even so, he would respond if he could, because he can tell from her expressions that it's something important. But he’s worried he's being too bold, as they're not yet close enough.

Then, Romeo imagines something really lovely. If two of the most sparkling stars had to go away for a while, they would ask Juliet's eyes to twinkle in their place. So, in this imaginary situation, what if her eyes were the stars and those stars were her eyes? The beauty of her face would then outshine the stars, just like daylight is brighter than lamps.

And, her eyes would be so bright at night that birds might get confused and think it was daytime instead of night. He notices how she is resting her cheek in her hand and wishes he could be a glove on her hand to touch her beautiful cheek. It's really just a fancy way of saying he thinks Juliet is super pretty and he really likes her.