The Art of Persuasion in the Age of AI: A Revolution in Healthcare
Hyper-Personalized AI in Healthcare The art of persuasion has always been a fundamental aspect of society, from companies enticing consumers to purchase their products to political parties seeking votes. However, we now live in an era where humans are no longer the sole influencers in decision-making. The rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have led to the creation of highly anthropomorphic and hyper-personalized large language models (LLMs) that are capable of remarkable feats of persuasion.
Techopedia recently delved into the potential benefits of AI in the healthcare system, particularly in driving behavior change. Yet, as with all advancements in AI, “whenever there is light, there are also shadows.”
Key Takeaways
- Hyper-personalized AI health coaches could revolutionize healthcare by promoting healthier lifestyle choices.
- AI therapy bots are tools that should complement but not replace professional human therapists.
- The persuasive power of AI raises concerns about misinformation, bias, privacy, and security issues, highlighting the need for regulatory oversight and human supervision.
Table of Contents
- Hyper-Personalized Health Coaches Address America’s Health Crisis
- Problems With Persuasion & Personalization
- Will AI Replace Health Professionals?
- The Bottom Line
Hyper-Personalized Health Coaches Address America’s Health Crisis
The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 129 million people in the US have at least one major chronic disease. “About 90% of the annual $4.1 trillion healthcare expenditure is attributed to managing and treating chronic diseases and mental health conditions.”
Health Affairs predicts that healthcare spending will grow by 7.5% in 2023, outpacing the nominal gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 6.1%. This paints a dire picture of unsustainability in the healthcare sector.
In a recent article for the Times, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and Arianna Huffington, CEO of Thrive Global, proposed that AI could help alleviate this healthcare crisis. OpenAI and Thrive Global are co-funding a new startup, Thrive AI, which will deliver hyper-personalized health coaches designed to influence change across the five foundational behaviors of sleep, food, movement, stress management, and social connection. The AI will be trained on peer-reviewed science, lifestyle methodologies such as microsteps, and user health data to generate well-informed and highly persuasive output.
“With AI-driven personalized behavior change, we have the chance to finally reverse the trend lines on chronic diseases,” asserts Altman and Huffington. They also acknowledge the connection between physical and mental health, championing Thrive AI’s provision of holistic care.
“With personalized nudges and real-time recommendations across all five behaviors—helping us improve our sleep, reduce sugar and ultra-processed foods, get more movement in our day, lower stress, and increase connection—AI could help us be in a stronger position to make better choices that nourish our mental health,” they wrote.
While this sounds promising, there are no guarantees that hyper-personalized and super-persuasive health bots will be free from the ethical challenges of misinformation, bias, and potential privacy and security concerns already associated with AI in healthcare.
Problems With Persuasion & Personalization
Earlier this year, Anthropic published research investigating AI’s persuasiveness. The results showed that each new iteration of Claude was more persuasive than its predecessor. While impressive, this scaling also raises concerns. According to Anthropic, persuasion “may ultimately be tied to certain kinds of misuse, such as using AI to generate disinformation, or persuading people to take actions against their own interests.”
A study published in Scientific Reports demonstrated the correlation between personalized messaging and effective persuasion in domains such as consumer product marketing and political appeals for climate change. Given the proper guidance and access to personal information, LLMs like ChatGPT have been more persuasive than humans in debate settings, highlighting AI’s ability to shape opinions or even alter a person’s beliefs. This functionality could be devastating in the medical arena, where accuracy and honesty are paramount.
Hannah Collinson, a Specialist Doctor in Pediatrics, told Techopedia that AI health coaches have real potential to provide lifestyle advice. However, false results or diagnoses and the manipulation of AI systems to deliver misinformation are genuine concerns. “There would need to be some human oversight,” she states.
Altman and Huffington seem aware of the potential problems, saying: “Policymakers need to create a regulatory environment that fosters AI innovation while safeguarding privacy. Health care providers need to integrate AI into their practices while ensuring that these tools meet rigorous standards for safety and efficacy.”
Will AI Replace Health Professionals?
AI is already contributing to medical breakthroughs. A scientific statement by the American Heart Association outlines how AI can improve cardiovascular and stroke outcomes. Another study found that a deep learning Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) was more successful than dermatologists at diagnosing skin cancer. Similarly, MIT researchers developed a machine learning system that can analyze chest X-rays and diagnose pneumonia.
While these results are extraordinary, the medical world is not ready to dispense with human professionals. The latter study showed that a hybrid human-AI model produced the best results. Teamwork between AI and humans seems to achieve increased efficiency and accuracy in disease diagnoses.
Collinson noted that AI could improve clinical efficiency by “interpreting X-rays or scans, blood results, and histology samples.” However, she doubts AI’s capabilities in delivering “the personal touch.” “Medicine is not just about the hard cold diagnostics; it’s a relationship with people who are potentially having a really difficult time, and I’m not sure how well AI would be able to replicate true empathy and the communication skills involved in a consultation,” she said.
In the mental health field, therapy bots are helping people access 24/7 support that would otherwise be inaccessible due to barriers such as cost and convenience. Character.ai’s “psychologist,” created by Sam Zaia, a medical student in New Zealand, has received 148.8 million messages to date, making it the most popular character on the platform. One user posted their experience on Medium, offering a balanced review of the bot: “I know some who have greatly benefited and would say this is even better than their therapists, while some regard this AI as a joke. To me, I think it’s a great source of support, but it’s far away from being salvation.”
Dr. Kate Darling, a Research Scientist at the MIT Media Lab, wrote in the BBC Science Focus Magazine: “It’s possible that therapy bots can be a huge help to people. But we should be wary of any products rushing to market with insufficient research, and especially AI-powered apps that may incorporate all manner of known and unknown harms.”
The Thrive AI website states that its product is not a replacement for human support but champions its superior benefits in the same breath. “Think of Thrive AI as a mental health specialist, coach, advisor, or counselor. What makes it better than a human one is that advice and insights are available whenever needed without making an appointment or booking a session,” it says.
Therapy bots can be helpful tools that produce immediate results for individuals in crisis, but they are far from certified therapists. The high number of users accessing these bots indicates high levels of mental health issues and a shortage of investment in public health services. AI can effectively alleviate the strain, but it is important to remember that it is not a replacement, no matter how personalized or persuasive it becomes.
The Bottom Line
Language is the primary vehicle of persuasion, and rapidly evolving LLMs will inevitably become experts in this field. Personalized and persuasive AI will likely transform healthcare, but robust safeguards must be implemented to maximize the benefits and mitigate the risks.
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