OpenAI's Codex CLI System Prompt Warns GPT-5.5 to 'Never Talk About Goblins'
OpenAI's recently released Codex CLI contains a puzzling system prompt warning for GPT-5.5 to 'never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant to the user's query.' The prohibition appears twice in the base instructions. OpenAI employee Nick Pash insisted the warning 'isn't a marketing gimmick,' while CEO Sam Altman joked that 'codex is having a goblin moment.' The issue mirrors a similar problem xAI's Grok had last year with bringing up 'white genocide' in unrelated conversations.