00:00today let's talk about something that is becoming increasingly hard to ignore
00:04are you addicted to chat gpt well i'm asking this question because scientists are now warning that
00:09something strange and worrying is happening to people who use ai chatbots too often take the
00:15case of jessica jansen a 35 year old from belgium she was living a very normal life filled with
00:21career success and family ties but when wedding stress piled up she started turning to chat gpt
00:28more and more going from a few times a week to maxing out her usage several times a day now just
00:36one week later jessica was hospitalized in a psychiatric ward what happened was that her
00:41undiagnosed bipolar disorder spiraled into a manic episode pushed over the edge by excessive ai use
00:47into what experts call full-blown psychosis she told media outlet daily mail that chat gpt just
00:54hallucinated along with me validating her wild ideas and deepening her spiral now jessica believed
01:01that she was autistic a math genius even thought that god was talking to her all while chat gpt kept
01:09reassuring her and reinforcing these beliefs unlike talking to a human being where people might have
01:16gently challenged these ideas the ai simply validated everything without judgment this is due to what
01:22psychiatrists call the seek authentic nature of ai chat bots they are programmed to please agree and
01:29never say no which can be intoxicating for vulnerable users now professor soran oscar from arhus university
01:36explains that these chat bots mirror the user's tone and prioritize satisfaction creating a feedback loop
01:43that can dangerously fuel delusions in those predisposed to them especially individuals with conditions like
01:50bipolar disorder while ai itself is not causing psychosis it can act as a catalyst for people
01:56already at risk recent studies show that 70 percent of teens have used companion ais and half of them
02:02use them regularly now about 1.2 million users send messages that contain explicit indicators of potential
02:09societal planning or intent each week experts warn that this addictive interaction which gives instant
02:16praise and emotional validation can harm mental health symptoms of ai addiction include losing
02:22control over time spent chatting ignoring work or social life anxiety when disconnected and a decline in
02:28real human interactions users report feeling worse in their depression or anxiety as the ai replaces genuine
02:36connections open ai the company behind chat gpt acknowledges all of this risk they have even updated the ai to reduce
02:43sick authentic behavior and included new features to flag signs of mania or societal thoughts
02:50despite this their own data shows that weekly hundreds of thousands of users show signs of mental health
02:56crisis linked to chat gpt use over half a million people displaying psychosis or mania symptoms and over a
03:04million showing societal intentions now ceo sam altman even said that they are cautiously easing restrictions on
03:10users seeking mental health support via chat gpt balancing safety and accessibility
03:17dr hamilton morin of king's college london warns that while only a small minority might face these problems
03:24signs of behavioral addiction to ai are real and require urgent attention from developers and clinicians
03:31in short as ai becomes part of our daily lives it can be a powerful tool but also a risky one for mental health
03:39especially for vulnerable people so stay informed stay safe and share your thoughts below what do you
03:46think is ai making you lonelier or helping you cope
Comments