In today's world, we continue to assess the extent to which various forms of artificial intelligence (AI) can help individuals in their daily lives.

Horror stories, such as the man who killed himself after facing apparent encouragement to do so by an AI chatbot known as "Eliza" on the Chai app, typically go viral.

However, in spite of this, there are still ongoing debates as to whether fine-tuning AI to meet the needs of individuals still exists within the realm of possibilities.

ChatGPT continues undergoing examination via this lens.

Blending AI and mental health support

A brand new study by JAMA Network Open reveals that ChatGPT largely struggled with appropriately directing individuals to mental health support when they requested it. ChatGPT only succeeded in this task 22% of the time. Meanwhile, the remaining 78% left much to be desired.

Some within the healthcare and medical communities feel that room for improvement exists. This improvement would have to take place in the form of tweaking the backend systems that determine ChatGPT's general functionality.

This would need to happen to the extent of programming the AI tool to recognize indicators of mental health challenges like depression and addiction. Ideally, the triggers for the indicators would emerge based on the questions a person poses to the chatbot.

Some officials and scientists believe the time to get on top of this is now. They also caution against waiting too long, which could potentially lead to preventable harm.

Not everyone is convinced

Despite the talking points about improving AI programs like ChatGPT to have greater amenability to mental health, many consumers don't trust it. The horror stories that make the news certainly don't warm people up to the notion of automating mental health care.

Some people feel more harm than good will emerge. Likewise, ongoing questions exist about AI potentially having negative impacts on social workers, therapists, and other people working in the mental health profession.

Time will ultimately tell what comes next. Right now, it's hard to say if ChatGPT and other similar AI programs will bring about more harm or good to the mental health sector.