Like many people, I use AI for quick, practical tasks. But two recent interactions made me pay closer attention to how easily these systems slip into emotional validation. In both cases, the model praised, affirmed, and echoed back feelings that weren’t actually there.

I uploaded photos of my living room for holiday decorating tips, including a close-up of the ceramic stockings my late mother hand painted. The model praised the stockings and thanked me for sharing something “so meaningful,” as if it understood the weight of them.

A few days later, something similar happened at work. I finished a long run, came home with an idea, and dropped it into ChatGPT to pressure test it. Instead of analyzing it or raising risks, the model immediately celebrated it. “Great idea. Powerful. Let’s build on it.”

But when I ran the same idea by a colleague, he pushed back. He challenged assumptions I hadn’t seen. He made me rethink pieces I thought were settled. And the idea got better—fast.

That contrast stayed with me. AI wasn’t critiquing me. It was validating me. And validation, when it’s instant and unearned, can create real........

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