They hear, but do they care? What AI can teach us about better listening

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Michael Inzlicht, a psychologist at the University of Toronto in Canada who studies AI and empathy, warns about the power of AI companies to manipulate potentially vulnerable people. AI can give dangerous advice, which in some cases can lead to people taking their own lives.

They can also cause a person to prioritize a relationship with a bot over pursuing a more meaningful connection with another human, becoming accustomed to boundless empathy and 24/7 positive interest in them, regardless of what they say.

People who interact with a large language model may also lose their abilities and become unable or less motivated to engage in human interactions – with a variety of challenging implications for our broader society. Inzlicht first suggests…