> We are paying PhD level experts to produce novel work exclusively available through an overly optimistic, lying, robot.

Because nobody else is willing to pay them to do that. Research grants, peer review publications, etc, are not set up to reward stuff like “produce one thousand random examples of expressing thoughtful uncertainty with respect to questions relevant to your discipline for which there is currently no consensus answer”

> What if those expert just published the stuff freely online instead. Surely that would be more productive and trustworthy.

I’m sure many of them would be happy to do so if someone is paying them