AI chatbots are here to help with your mental health, despite limited evidence they work

Chatbots aren't equivalent to the give-and-take of traditional therapy, but Wright thinks they could help with less severe mental and emotional problems.. Earkick's website states that the app does not "provide any form of medical care, medical opinion, diagnosis or treatment."..

Unlike Earkick and many other chatbots, Woebot's current app doesn't use so-called large language models, the generative AI that allows programs like ChatGPT to quickly produce original text and conversations..

Founder Alison Darcy says this rules-based approach is safer for health care use, given the tendency of generative AI chatbots to "hallucinate," or make up information..

"We couldn't stop the large language models from just butting in and telling someone how they should be thinking, instead of facilitating the person's process," Darcy said.. Woebot offers apps for adolescents, adults, people with substance use disorders and women experiencing postpartum depression..

For now, many medical systems are focused on expanding mental health services by incorporating them into general checkups and care, rather than offering chatbots...