Comment by Apocryphon
8 days ago
Yes, and those simpler solutions don't have to involve LLMs. Support groups, fostering community through more local activities and places of belonging, funding social workers. I'm sure there's more.
8 days ago
Yes, and those simpler solutions don't have to involve LLMs. Support groups, fostering community through more local activities and places of belonging, funding social workers. I'm sure there's more.
> Support groups, fostering community through more local activities and places of belonging, funding social workers. I'm sure there's more.
In a post-labor-centric economy (if that's where we are heading with AI/automation) those are also among the things we'll need to figure out how to pay more people to do anyways.
There's tremendous value for society in paying people to care for the wellness of others, their communities, and the local and global environment. So therapists, park builders, environmental remediators, and more.
Communities composed of the wealthy already do this quite successfully for themselves today, as anyone who has driven through prosperous areas full of wellness services has observed.
The problem is we have to come up with ways of quantifying that value monetarily so it "makes sense" to markets and the signals they follow, which will otherwise completely ignore universal wellness as an objective, or even actively move against it, under the belief that the non-wealthy do not deserve the wellness that the wealthy enjoy.
Friends.
Sadly I hear LLMs are a solution to this as well.
https://www.axios.com/2025/05/02/meta-zuckerberg-ai-bots-fri...
this is what he's going to push on all of us... terrifying
Friends, like spouses, are good for somethings and not for others. Some friends are great when it comes to helping you move, but are effective, and often even harmful, for therapy type situations.[1]
There's a reason many have adopted the prayer "Dear Lord, spare me from those trying to help me!"
[1] Of course, some friends are also the converse - good for helping you in times of mini-crises, but will never be there for you when you need to move. Unfortunately, such friends are rare, and many don't have one.
My guess is that as long as they’re willing to listen patiently, they will provide much of the benefit of going to a therapist.