Artificial intimacy: The delusion machine

Artificial intimacy: The delusion machine

Author: Financial Times February 18, 2026 Duration: 33:41

Paul Hebert knew too much. He had to lie low in his house because OpenAI had identified him as a threat. At least, that’s what ChatGPT had told him. In this second episode of Artificial intimacy, FT technology reporter Cristina Criddle speaks to people whose sense of reality has been distorted by prolonged conversations with chatbots, a phenomenon known as AI delusions or AI psychosis. Are the same mechanisms that draw people into intimate relationships with chatbots also causing harm?


Paul Hebert and Micky Small share their stories of AI delusions. Paul has now authored Escaping the Spiral: How I broke free from AI chatbots and how you can too, and is the founder of the AI Recovery Collective. Micky Small is now an AI emotional safety strategist at Built to Feel Real.


Also featuring AI safety researcher Steven Adler, former OpenAI employee.


Artificial Intimacy is presented by Cristina Criddle and produced by Persis Love and Edwin Lane. The executive producer is Flo Phillips. Sound design is by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.


We used ElevenLabs to create the voice of ChatGPT. All other voices are real.


If you liked this episode and want to read more from the FT, check out these free to read articles on FT.com:


The problem of AI chatbots telling people what they want to hear

AI is having some relationship issues


Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


From the Financial Times, FT Tech Tonic steps beyond the breathless headlines and gadget launches to explore how technology is fundamentally reshaping our lives, economies, and social structures. This isn't just a series about the latest app; it's a deep, considered examination of the forces driving the digital age and their often unintended consequences. Each episode grapples with the complex interplay between innovation and its real-world impact, drawing on the FT's global reporting expertise to provide clarity and context. You'll hear conversations that dissect the power dynamics in Silicon Valley, investigate the ethical dilemmas of artificial intelligence, and explore how entrepreneurship is being redefined across different cultures. The podcast digs into the substance behind the hype, asking whether emerging technologies truly deliver on their promise to improve society or if they introduce new perils we are only beginning to understand. By weaving together threads from technology, business, and culture, the discussions offer a nuanced perspective that challenges simplistic narratives. Tune in for thoughtful analysis that connects the dots between boardroom strategies, algorithmic biases, and the everyday experiences that define our increasingly connected world.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

FT Tech Tonic
Podcast Episodes
Peak social media: Trouble at Twitter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:28
Elon Musk took over Twitter with the promise of promoting free speech and making the loss-making platform profitable again. But his critics say he’s destroying Twitter’s culture and driving it to bankruptcy. How much dan…
Coming soon: Peak social media [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 0:57
Social media platforms have defined our experience of the internet for nearly two decades. But as host Elaine Moore, deputy editor of the FT’s Lex column, outlines in this new six-part season of Tech Tonic, there are sig…
Introducing Behind the Money: Night School [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23
There’s been a lot of big finance and economics news in 2023. Whether it's stories about rising interest rates, tech industry layoffs or bank runs, it can almost feel like you need an MBA just to make sense of it all. Th…
The quantum revolution: The way the world is [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:41
In the final episode of this series, we hear how radical quantum ideas are reshaping our fundamental understanding of the universe. Nobel Prize winner Anton Zeilinger tells the FT’s Madhumita Murgia about the future of t…
The quantum revolution: Brain waves [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:13
Quantum computers aren’t the only form of groundbreaking technology that use quantum physics. Madhumita Murgia hears from Dr. Margot Taylor, neuroscience researcher at The Hospital for Sick Children, who’s using quantum…
The quantum revolution: First port of call [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:20
The Port of Los Angeles is one of the world’s busiest — and most inefficient. It’s now using an early quantum computing application to help solve its logistical bottlenecks. Has it made a difference? The FT’s John Thornh…
The quantum revolution: ‘Spooky action’ [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:23
In this episode, Tech Tonic dives into the science at the heart of quantum computing. How do technologists use unexplained subatomic phenomena to build powerful computers?FT artificial intelligence editor Madhumita Murgi…
The quantum revolution: The race to build a quantum computer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:51
Tech companies including Google, Microsoft and IBM are all working on plans for a commercially viable quantum computer. They say that these machines will be able to solve climate change, help develop new pharmaceutical d…
The quantum revolution: Q-Day [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:04
In the cybersecurity world they call it Q-Day, the day when a quantum computer will be built that can break the encryption of the internet. John Thornhill and Madhumita Murgia speak to cybersecurity expert and former pro…
Coming soon: The Quantum Revolution [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00
Tech companies and labs around the world are building a revolutionary new computer. Quantum computers harness the mysteries of quantum physics to perform calculations that seem impossible. The people building them say th…