Am I a Bad Parent or Is Technology Replacing Me?
"My daughter told an AI app things she never told me. Am I a bad parent or is technology replacing me?" This was not a product question. This was a parent standing there... feeling replaced by code.
September 17, 2024
I was speaking at a conference earlier this year, post my talk somebody asked me...
"My daughter told an AI app things she never told me. Am I a bad parent or is technology replacing me?"
This was not a product question, nor about features or privacy policies. This was a parent standing there... feeling replaced by code.
Even though she mentioned another app, I kept thinking about it. Because my team build these things. We talk about accessibility and breaking stigma and democratizing care.
But nobody talks about this part.
We made it so easy to talk to an algorithm that maybe we're filling a gap that families used to fill. A gap that friends used to fill.
As a CTO, I can tell you why it happens. AI doesn't judge. It doesn't get tired. It's available at 3am when you're breaking down and everyone else is asleep.
It's perfect access.
But perfect access to what? A conversation that should have happened at the dinner table? A breakdown that needed a hug?
And that question from that parent... it still sits with me.
Because she wasn't wrong to ask.
