[Syntonicles]

Maybe. I've used ChatGPT for "therapy" a few times and I partly agree with you. A couple of times I had a terrible day and found myself even more frustrated after trying to vent to the AI because all it did was offer ideas and lists and elementary explanations of things I already knew.

Other times, it helped me to explore relationships in my life. In that way it worked a little bit like free-writing, but an interactive / guided exercise. It turns out that a little objectivity and reflection was all I needed.

Is it a substitute for a human? No. Then again, are you volunteering to listen to me complain? I don't want to abuse my limited friendships and I'm not going to pay someone.

My frustration was with the limitations of the AI, not the fact that it was a bot. If it remembered my past conversations, built a profile of my personality and preferences, and wasn't such a stick in the mud regarding policy then I suspect the companionship would be socially rewarding, at least to me.

[throwaway81523]

Back in the 1960s, people also reported being helped by talking to ELIZA. Rubber duck effect, as it were. ChatGPT seems about the same.

[legerdemain]

  > Is it a substitute for a human? No. Then again, are you volunteering to listen to me complain?

People at 7cups.com are volunteering to listen to you complain. As much as you like, on any topic (with obvious caveats around abuse, etc.).