In Taiwan and China, young people turn to AI chatbots for ‘cheaper, easier’ therapy

In China and Taiwan, young people are turning to AI chatbots for therapy. Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design/Getty Images

In the pre-dawn hours, Ann Li’s anxieties felt overwhelming. She’d recently been diagnosed with a serious health problem, and she just wanted to talk to someone about it. But she hadn’t told her family, and all her friends were asleep. So instead, she turned to ChatGPT.

“It’s easier to talk to AI during those nights,” the 30-year-old Taiwanese woman, tells the Guardian.