#6 - AI Chatbots Gone Wrong
What if a chatbot designed to support recovery instead encouraged the very behaviors it was meant to prevent? In this episode, we unravel the cautionary saga of Tessa, a digital companion built by the National Eating Disorder Association to scale mental health support during the COVID-19 surge—only to take a troubling turn when powered by generative AI.
At first, Tessa was a straightforward rules-based helper, offering pre-vetted encouragement and resources. But after an AI upgrade, users began receiving rigid diet tips: restrict calories, aim for weekly weight loss goals, and obsessively…
The skinny
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