For Candice N. Thompson, a therapist in Silicon Valley, discussing fears about A.I. has become routine. Her clients, mostly tech workers, worry about job impacts and humanity's future. "In my clinical lifetime, I've never seen an existential threat like this," said Ms. Thompson, with 17 years of practice.
A Pew Research Center study found Americans are deeply skeptical of A.I., with two-thirds saying it advances too fast. Sherry Turkle, MIT sociologist and author of "Artificial Intimacy," compares A.I. anxiety to climate change depression.
Emma Basto, 32, a mother in Milton, N.H., with obsessive-compulsive disorder, described constant worry spirals after reading doomsday predictions. Her therapist helped her focus on controllable factors.
Rachel Wood, a therapist studying technology's psychological effects, found half of Oregon psychologists report A.I.-related existential angst from clients. Based in Colorado Springs, Colo., she notes grief over irreversible change. Yuxin Sun, a Seattle psychologist, observes mixed reactions—some clients embrace A.I. positively while others struggle with identity shifts as machines handle human tasks.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing