ChatGPT gets ‘anxiety’ from violent and disturbing user inputs, so researchers are teaching the chatbot mindfulness techniques to ‘soothe’ it

A man in a beanbag chair sits with his hands clasped over his mouth, with his laptop on his lap. (Credit: Getty Images)

• A study found ChatGPT responds to mindfulness-based strategies, which changes how it interacts with users. The chatbot can experience “anxiety” when it is given disturbing information, which increases the likelihood of it responding with bias, according to the study’s authors. The results of this research could be used to inform how AI can be used in mental health interventions.

Even AI chatbots can have trouble coping with anxieties from the outside world, but researchers believe they’ve found ways to ease those artificial minds.