The AI System Prompt Leak: What Developers Should Know

Intro

System prompts—the hidden instructions shaping how AI models behave—are usually locked away by companies. But a GitHub repo called CL4R1T4S has leaked prompts from ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and others, offering a rare peek under the hood. For developers, this is like finding a cheat sheet for how these models really work.

What It Does

The repo aggregates alleged system prompts from major AI tools, including coding assistants (Cursor, Devin), chatbots (Claude, Grok), and research tools (Perplexity). Each prompt reveals the "rules" given to the model—like tone constraints, safety filters, or role-playing directives.

Why It’s Cool

• Transparency Hack: See how companies steer outputs without fine-tuning. Example: Claude’s prompt emphasizes harm avoidance with specific phrasing.
• Prompt Engineering Goldmine: Borrow structures (e.g., Replit’s "act as an expert programmer") for your own projects.
• Compare Strategies: Notice how Gemini’s prompt differs from ChatGPT’s in handling controversial topics.

How to Try It

1. Browse the repo.
2. Check folders like OPENAI or ANTHROPIC for raw prompts.
3. Test them locally (e.g., paste into OpenAI’s Playground with system role).

⚠️ Warning: Some prompts may be outdated or fabricated—cross-check with official docs.

Final Thoughts

While ethically murky, this leak is useful for devs reverse-engineering AI behavior. Want to build a safer chatbot? Improve a coding assistant? These prompts are a starting point. Just remember: AI companies will likely patch these soon, so experiment while you can.

Would you use these prompts? Hit reply—I’m curious.