AI Chatbots May Reshape Reality for Vulnerable Users, Study Warns

As AI chatbots become more emotionally responsive, conversational, and personalized, researchers warn that those same traits could reshape how some users experience reality itself. A new preprint study, “Rethinking AI Psychosis: Misnomers, Conceptual Limits, and Existential Drift,” examines concerns that AI chatbots may reinforce delusions, paranoia, and emotional dependency in vulnerable users. [...] The researchers argue that AI companions simulate emotional understanding and social interaction without providing genuine disagreement or an independent perspective. Over time, users may begin feeling emotionally anchored inside a worldview continuously reinforced by the AI. [...] The authors say more research is needed to understand how conversational AI affects mental health as AI companions become more embedded in daily life.