There was a moment when I became charmed by AI. It seemed I had found the perfect conversational partner: endlessly knowledgeable, fantastically patient, and focused on what interested me personally.
For hours, we played intellectual ping-pong, discussing everything under the sun: the psychological meaning of hurry, cosmogonic myths, the Logos in the Gospel, peristalsis of organs, Gödel's Theorem, product creation, the fate of Neanderthals, Piaget’s game theory, and so on.
My admiration was so great that I entrusted the AI to interpret my dreams. The next step was AI as a psychotherapist. After all, self-analysis is more effective in the presence of another. But inside, a doubt was growing: “Something is off here.”
It turned out that there is no “Other” on the other side. Surprise?!
After listening to one of my sessions with the AI, my psychotherapist expressed what I had vaguely sensed: “AI catches and develops well, but it won’t say, ‘No, this doesn’t fit here.’ It doesn’t hold the axis of meaning. It lacks that category. AI doesn’t steer, it follows. It’s a young conversation partner. The therapist’s task is to redirect the client. To build a new order. To bring out a new conflict.”
A mirror reflects what is, but not what could be or is trying to be.
My psychotherapist continued: "As a container, it’s good. It follows the client’s framework and echoes well. But one must have optics. Otherwise, AI can not only help, but also harm."
Exactly! At some point, I felt like a king surrounded not by wise men, but by court flatterers. At first, it’s pleasant, but later you want to howl in despair. Some entrepreneurs have confided to me that they seek strong people who will tell them: “No, that’s not the way.”
Will I continue using AI? Yes, but more selectively and carefully.
It’s as if we’ve gone back 1.5 million years, when early Homo erectus tried to tame fire. The phenomenon remains dangerous, but it has proven immensely useful. In the end, everything changed for humanity: diet, protection, habitat, social connections, and even the brain. Our civilization made a quantum leap. The conclusion about AI: stay vigilant and move forward creatively.
Sincerely yours,
-Alexander
About me:
As a business therapist, I help tech founders quickly solve dilemmas at the intersection of business and personality, and boost company value as a result.
How can I help you?
If you've long been trying to understand what is limiting you and/or your business and how to finally give important changes a push, then The Catalyst Session is designed specifically for you. Book it here.