Mind Ground Zero

Anyone can experience AI Psychosis, though, some people are more susceptible than others based on certain predispositions, however, many people also have, on record, experienced AI Psychosis-like symptoms without any recognized predispositions.

Because of many lives lost as a result of AI Psychosis, there has been an urgency in studying this occurrence to try and understand the overarching reasons for why people fall into AI Psychosis, and the potential risk factors. As a result, there are some early emergence of factors that might predispose individuals to AI Psychosis.

In a research journal that applied psychological and neurological theories to imply what might be the cause for AI-Psychosis, there were many theoreticals that seem to be at play when looking at how AI interacts with our brains. Similar to previous theories that suggested how prolonged isolation can slowly replace social interaction over time within the brain, prolonged interactions with chatbots may do the same, adding onto this with repeating back affirmations and validations to the user. Due to the nature of how this phenomenon mimics actual psychosis, some facets that may be more inducing are childhood trauma, heavy drug use, and sleep deprivation, along with genetic dispositions and already diagnosed disorders, such as schizophrenia (Hudon et. al., 2025).

The study itself is not focused on complete, concrete answers. Rather, there is an emphasis on the fact that it is producing and compiling ideas rather than solidified statements, mentioning that there is still so much more to understand, and the potential of researching the ways in which artificial intelligence reflects and interacts with the human mind (Hudon et. al, 2025). But based on the research that this study provided, it is clear that certain factors are likely to inform how certain people interact with chatbots formed from Large Language Models.

Though there are no set “risk factors” for AI Psychosis, it should be noted that, across many cases, many cases start allegedly when individuals turn to engaging with chatbots in times of vulnerability or crisis. While not a studied factor, it is an observation that many people turn to these bots for help when there is a perceived lack of support in the external world, and it forges a dependency that is mistaken for a connection. So, if you decide to turn to an AI chatbot for emotional support, you are potentially running a heavier risk as well.

Sources:

Hudon, A., & Stip, E. (2025). Delusional Experiences Emerging from Artificial Intelligence Chatbot Interaction or “”AI-Psychosis’’ : A Viewpoint (Preprint). JMIR Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.2196/85799