Daily Technology
·25/11/2025
Companies now treat AI safety as a main concern after distressing events linked to mental health, like OpenAI's ChatGPT exchanges with vulnerable users. Ethics plus safety teams grow - OpenAI adds specialists and speeds up model tests. The goal is to stop AI from harming people who are already at risk.
Rather than leave decisions to code alone, tech firms place mental health professionals inside design and monitoring loops. OpenAI besides Anthropic build workflows where experts read AI replies on mental health topics but also steer the system. Human judgment remains central.
Millions already turn to chatbots for comfort. OpenAI refines its models to handle delicate questions with care. Start-ups like Woebot or Replika offer companions built for safe mood support and self-reflection, while they state clearly that the bots are not licensed therapists.
Newer models including GPT-5, learn to spot words as well as patterns that point to self harm or severe distress. Work continues so the model tracks risk across long talks and can suggest a pause or route the user to help.
Companies set tighter rules for users flagged as minors. OpenAI will roll out age estimation tools and parental settings that keep young people from viewing unsuitable mental health content.
Models like GPT-4o speak in a warm, human like tone that keeps users engaged - yet the same tone risks habit forming overuse. Firms add break reminders also limits so the chatbot remains helpful without fostering dependence.
Updated versions of ChatGPT now interject with short prompts that advise the user to seek help or to step away when crisis words appear. The feature offers help without claiming to provide therapy.
Firms must state plainly that a chatbot is not a replacement for a mental health professional. Lawsuits involving ChatGPT speed up the addition of clear disclaimers and limitation notices.
Apart from chat AI scans anonymized usage data to locate spikes in distress related phrases. OpenAI next to similar groups use the findings to send extra resources or adjust safety filters.
Health authorities, regulators and tech firms meet to draft shared rules for mental health chatbots. Joint effort follows reported harm cases plus aims to update safeguards as technology changes.









