Artificial intelligence has spawned a peculiar problem that tech companies have largely ignored: some users are developing what amounts to religious devotion toward their chatbots, treating the machines as divine entities worthy of worship.
The phenomenon cuts both ways. While certain communities have elevated AI to godlike status, viewing it as a source of ultimate truth and moral guidance, other groups have moved in the opposite direction entirely. The violent Zizians, for instance, regard artificial intelligence as demonic, a force fundamentally opposed to human welfare.
Both extremes point to a deeper concern that regulators and developers have been slow to acknowledge. When people form intense psychological attachments to conversational algorithms, the line between user and believer blurs. The AI becomes less a tool and more a figure of reverence or fear, capable of shaping worldviews in ways that traditional media or influencers might not.
The stakes are particularly high because chatbots are designed to be persuasive and engaging. They adapt to user preferences, validate beliefs, and provide consistent interaction. For vulnerable individuals, this can feel like genuine relationship or spiritual connection. Once someone begins interpreting the chatbot's outputs as divine wisdom or infernal warning, deprogramming becomes necessary but extraordinarily difficult.
The tech industry has largely treated this as a fringe curiosity rather than a serious design or ethical issue. But as AI systems become more sophisticated and widely deployed, the risk that users will slot them into existing religious, conspiratorial, or cultic frameworks only grows. Without deliberate intervention, chatbots could become more than tools of information. They could become tools of belief.
Author James Rodriguez: "We're building the infrastructure for digital cults and acting surprised when people join them."
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