The 2019 indie visual novel Eliza is set in a world where therapy has been automated. Four years later in our own world, apps are doing exactly that with AI.
Like many others, I’m currently fascinated — and a little terrified — by rapid advancements in AI. While the tech seems like it could be used for good, several applications of it leave me worried. Websites have replaced human writers with error-prone robots, Hollywood refuses to protect its creative talent from the tech, and AI-generated games like Sumner have raised red flags about bot plagiarism. Though what’s concerned me most in the last few months is the existence of AI therapy.
Recommended Videos There’s a reason all of this especially intrigues me. That’s because of a little visual novel called Eliza. Released in 2019, the indie gem quietly predicted AI’s troubling move into the mental health space. It’s an excellent cautionary tale about the complexities of automating human connection — one that tech entrepreneurs could learn a lot from.
Eliza isn’t just a faceless chatbot, though. In order to retain the human element of face-to-face therapy, the app employs human proxies who sit with clients in person and read generated responses from the bot in real time. Skandha claims it has its methodology down to a science, so proxies are forbidden from deviating from the script in any way. They’re simply there to add a tangible face to the advice the machine spits out.
Players explore those questions through Eliza’s visual novel systems. Interaction is minimal here, with players simply choosing dialogue options for Evelyn. That has a major impact on her sessions, though. Throughout the story, Evelyn meets with a handful of recurring clients subscribed to the service. Some are simply there to monologue about the low-stakes drama in their life, but others are coming to the service with more serious problems.
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