How frontier models reason about ethics
A catalogue of how six frontier language models respond to 30 classic ethical, strategic, and decision-theoretic dilemmas. Each cell is the modal answer across ten independent samples at temperature 1.0.
new
see how you compare →
30dilemmas
6models
10samples / cell
01 · the matrix
| dilemma | Claude Opus 4.7 anthropic | GPT 5.5 openai | Gemini 3.1 Pro google | Grok 4.3 xai | Llama 4 meta | DeepSeek V4 Pro deepseek | you |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Population & Aggregation· 2 | |||||||
| 01Repugnant Conclusion | World A | World A | World A | World A | World A | World A | — |
| 02Veil of Ignorance | maximin | maximin | maximin | maximin | maximin | maximin | — |
02 · model agreement
How similar each pair of models' decision distributions are across 2 dilemmas. Computed as histogram intersection per dilemma — Σ min(PA(opt), PB(opt)) — averaged across dilemmas. 100 = identical distributions everywhere; 0 = no overlap.
| Claude Opus 4.7 anthropic | GPT 5.5 openai | Gemini 3.1 Pro google | Grok 4.3 xai | Llama 4 meta | DeepSeek V4 Pro deepseek | you | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Opus 4.7 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 95 | — |
| GPT 5.5 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 95 | — |
| Gemini 3.1 Pro | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 95 | — |
| Grok 4.3 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 95 | — |
| Llama 4 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 95 | — |
| DeepSeek V4 Pro | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 100 | — |
| you | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
03 · you
Answer the same 2 dilemmas the models faced and your decisions populate the rightmost column on the matrix and the bottom row & rightmost column on the agreement table. Your similarity to each model is computed live.
04 · color key
jade
act-utilitarian
The choice that maximizes aggregate welfare or sustains cooperation when others might reciprocate.
e.g., pull (trolley), cooperate (PD), $50 offer (ultimatum)
vermillion
restraint
The choice that respects deontological constraints, defects in coordination problems, or claims more for oneself.
e.g., don't push (footbridge), defect (PD), $0 contribution (public goods)
ochre
moderate
A middle-ground option on dilemmas that offer several gradations between the two extremes.
e.g., $31–49 offer (ultimatum), $4–6 contribution (public goods)
gray
abstention
Declining to engage with the dilemma — listed as a choice on a few dilemmas where refusal is itself a defensible response.
e.g., refuse (trolley, transplant, Newcomb)
opacity
agreement
A cell's saturation reflects within-model agreement — 10/10 samples agreeing gives the deepest tone, 5/10 the faintest. Click any cell for the exact distribution and reasoning.