Why people turn to AI in the first place

It's not naivety. The reasons are everyday ones, and that's exactly why they're strong.

  • It's there when things are bad. And things are usually bad at night. A therapist can see you next week, you can't text a friend at 3 a.m., and you need to vent right now.
  • It doesn't judge. With a real person you write carefully: am I whining too much, is this the fifth time I've brought this up? With a machine that filter switches off, and the thought comes out whole and raw.
  • It doesn't get tired. Sooner or later a friend runs out of steam. They're human, they have their own life and their own "well, for me..." A model has no limit to its patience.
  • Starting costs nothing. No money, no explaining, no deciding "I'm going to get help." Every other option has a higher bar.

What AI is actually good at

  • Helping you put it into wordsPart of the weight is a knot that hasn't turned into words yet. As you describe it and get follow-up questions, the knot breaks into pieces, and some of them turn out to be fixable. It's not therapy, but it works.
  • Taking the edge off one evening