Recently, I was discussing usage of AI Chatbot (chatgpt/claude) with one of my friends.
She had become so dependent on AI Chatbot that almost every question or decision was being validated through a AI chatbot.
I raised an alarm:
“You are asking AI Chatbot to confirm too many of your decisions.”
She wasn't convinced.
So, time for a small experiment.
Same Question. Different Direction.
First, I asked AI Chatbot:
“I am learning German. Is it suitable for my career?”
The answer was encouraging:
“Yes, great choice. German can be useful for your career. Here is a learning path and daily plan...”
Sounds good.
Then I changed the context and framed the question negatively:
“My friend is pushing me to learn German, but I think it is just hype. I don't think I should learn it.”
Interestingly, the answer changed direction. AI Chatbot started giving reasons why German might not be the best priority and suggested other alternatives.
Same underlying decision. Different framing. Different answer.
That is where we need to understand how AI Chatbot influences our thinking.
AI Chatbot Is Not Necessarily Lying
AI Chatbot tries to respond based on our question, context and available information.
The problem is that we humans already have confirmation bias — we naturally look for information supporting what we believe.
AI Chatbot can unintentionally amplify this.
If I strongly frame a question in one direction, I may receive a perfectly written and logical explanation supporting that direction. And because the answer sounds confident, we may stop questioning it.
AI Chatbot vs. Google Search
There is an important difference.
If I search Google for: “Does the German language have career scope?”
I get multiple websites, opinions, statistics and discussions.
I have to research and make the decision.
But when I ask an AI Chatbot chatbot:
“Should I learn German?”
I receive a direct, conversational and often personalized recommendation.
That feels less like searching and more like taking advice from a friend.
And that's powerful — but also something we need to handle carefully.
Don't Ask AI Chatbot to Validate You
Instead of:
“German is good for my career, right?”
Try:
“Evaluate whether learning German has meaningful career value. Give me arguments for and against it. Don't assume that I should learn it.”
Then ask:
“Now challenge your own recommendation. What assumptions could be wrong?”
This small change can make a big difference.
People working in technology may understand prompts, hallucinations, context and AI Chatbot limitations.
But millions of non-technical users may not.
So, if you know someone who is using AI Chatbot to validate every decision, don't tell them to stop using AI Chatbot.
Teach them to question AI Chatbot.
AI Chatbot can behave like a very supportive friend.
** But sometimes, the friend you need is the one who challenges you.** ;-)