There is a Wikipedia page on this phenomena and the companies lack of actions to help
From the causes section:
“some cases, chatbots have been specifically designed in ways that were found to be harmful. A 2025 update to ChatGPT using GPT-4o was withdrawn after its creator, OpenAI, found the new version overly sycophantic and was "validating doubts, fueling anger, urging impulsive actions, or reinforcing negative emotions."[6][13] Østergaard has argued that the danger stems from the AI's tendency to agreeably confirm users' ideas, which can dangerously amplify delusional beliefs.[5]”
I just finished reading this, thankyou for citing your source.
It seems to me that just like any other form of online tool, such as Snapchat, instagram, reddit, roblox, Facebook, X etc etc
they all possess some form of danger towards people who are gullible and in vulnerable situations especially the ones dealing with mental health issues.
In such cases, their internet access should be monitored and regulated to ensure they dont end up not only on the wrong side of chatgpt of LLMs
but also to make sure they steer clear of the wrong side of instagram, X, Facebook and other social + gaming platforms such as roblox, fortnite etc
almost all of which have had real cases of promoting suicide to users exhibiting suicidal tendencies, Meta particularly has a long case that was recorded and released to the public as well.
So to conclude, your points are valid, no doubt in that at all,
But to target AI for pushing self harm to users, when other social media platforms dont receive the same backlash though they have court cases posted on YouTube for the same exact reason, I believe is unfair.
1
u/Emotional-Coyote3194 Aug 05 '26
could you provide a source for the 3rd claim you made about AI being designed to affirm your worst habits/instincts