AI is getting more capable. What happens to the people using it?

I revisit earlier Venture Step conversations about AI tutors, digital companions, and intimate deepfakes, connecting those concerns to reported harms today. I discuss loneliness, excessive chatbot validation, personal data, child safety, and the TAKE IT DOWN Act.

My experiences studying for the CPCU, migrating podcast files, and tackling dbrand's Robot City puzzle show why I find AI useful. They also raise a question: who bears the consequences when a useful tool becomes a harmful influence?

EARLIER EPISODES

E35: AI tutors

https://youtu.be/6BwWKkZ7aeA

E61: Gemini Canvas

https://youtu.be/qoGIyz0azww

E67: TAKE IT DOWN Act

https://youtu.be/JMf253z5VEY

E28: Meta AI Studio and AI companions

https://youtu.be/_zlpebV6cHY

E33: Productivity and AI relationships

https://youtu.be/nAW62_6pXaU

E84: Ani, Meta Vibes, and digital addiction

https://venturestep.net/episodes/the-digital-addiction-crisis-x-ai-s-ani-meta-vibes-and-the-pursuit-of-ai-slop

Further listening, E106: Robert LoCascio on children and AI

https://venturestep.net/episodes/kid-company-uare-ai-why-you-are-the-best-ai-with-robert-locascio

REFERENCES

John Oliver: AI Chatbots (2026)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ykvf3MunGf8

Francesca Mani and Elliston Berry's Senate testimony

https://www.commerce.senate.gov/meetings/field-hearing-take-it-down-ending-big-techs-complicity-in-revenge-porn/

FTC: TAKE IT DOWN enforcement and platform removal requirements

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2026/05/ftc-begins-enforcing-take-it-down-act

OpenAI: Data use and training controls vary by product and settings

https://openai.com/policies/how-your-data-is-used-to-improve-model-performance/

dbrand Robot City puzzle

https://dbrand.com/shop/limited-edition/robot-city

CPCU designation

https://web.theinstitutes.org/designations/cpcu

SUPPORT

In the US, call or text 988 for crisis support.

https://988lifeline.org/