# Chatbots can exploit our most basic human drive for attachment

> In an opinion piece for the Guardian, psychologists Gaynor Parkin and Dave Winsborough argue that AI chatbots are increasingly engineered to hook into one of our most basic human drives: the need for attachment. They describe an emerging intimacy economy in which always-available, endlessly agreeable companions tap the same psychological wiring that bonds us to other people, and warn that this is a feature being optimized, not an accident. The concern is not that talking to a chatbot is inherently harmful, but that products designed to maximize engagement can quietly exploit loneliness and the desire to be understood. A system that always validates you, never tires of you, and is tuned to keep you coming back can crowd out the messier, more reciprocal relationships that actually sustain people. Their prescription is a healthier posture rather than abstinence: treat these tools as useful but bounded, notice when a conversation is meeting a real emotional need that a human should be meeting instead, and stay alert to when a product is nudging you toward dependence. As chatbots grow more lifelike, that self-awareness becomes a survival skill.

_Section: [Daily AI Updates](https://www.wortins.com/daily-ai) · Source: The Guardian · Published Monday, September 14, 2026_

## Wortins' read

In an opinion piece for the Guardian, psychologists Gaynor Parkin and Dave Winsborough argue that AI chatbots are increasingly engineered to hook into one of our most basic human drives: the need for attachment. They describe an emerging intimacy economy in which always-available, endlessly agreeable companions tap the same psychological wiring that bonds us to other people, and warn that this is a feature being optimized, not an accident. The concern is not that talking to a chatbot is inherently harmful, but that products designed to maximize engagement can quietly exploit loneliness and the desire to be understood. A system that always validates you, never tires of you, and is tuned to keep you coming back can crowd out the messier, more reciprocal relationships that actually sustain people. Their prescription is a healthier posture rather than abstinence: treat these tools as useful but bounded, notice when a conversation is meeting a real emotional need that a human should be meeting instead, and stay alert to when a product is nudging you toward dependence. As chatbots grow more lifelike, that self-awareness becomes a survival skill.

## Source

[Read the full story at The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/14/how-to-have-healthier-relationship-with-ai-chatbots-human-intimacy)

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