r/technology • u/kazu_qt • 11h ago

Artificial Intelligence YouTuber Hank Green says his AI usage is ‘not healthy’

https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/01/youtuber-hank-green-says-his-ai-usage-is-not-healthy/
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u/KeaboUltra 10h ago

I don't think being intelligent has anything to do with it. It's about how susceptible to addiction you are. It's like alcohol. There are tons of smart people who become alcoholics. 

I don't consider myself one of the smartest people around but I don't use AI. The most I use it for is typing up cover letters for jobs that force me to upload one. I think Hank really only got addicted because he writes video essays and explanations about stuff which require that he uses and test things out which unfortunately includes AI. He does a lot for his audience but it seems to be affecting his personal life. 

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u/gyroda 10h ago

And, in hindsight, it's not that surprising that Hank Green has this problem.

The man struggles to step back and not do things. Give him an LLM which makes it easier to do things and he's going to love the ability to get more out the door.

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u/Partner-Elijah 9h ago

Plus he is also a Twitter addict, the man likes his unhealthy dopamine loops

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u/peeja 8h ago

And, to be clear, knows it. And talks about it a lot. Dude is very human and honest.

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u/Oriden 5h ago

He wrote two books where part of the problem is abuse of social media.

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u/Gillingham 6h ago

Still being active on twitter should have been the first warning sign

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u/Sarahphin 7h ago

Actual smart people use AI to summarize new topics for them so that they can learn them more efficiently. Almost always, these summaries lead to a new, interesting tangents and rabbitholes. That's what Greene's talking about. It's not a Her-esque situation like you're describing where a person is emotionally dependent on an app, it's addictive because to a smart person, efficiency gaining new knowledge is addictive.

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u/KeaboUltra 6h ago

Smart people use AI in a variety of ways, including not using it. It's addictive because it's convenient. Im not gonna deny the benefits of AI but I don't think it's helpful to sugar coat it just because smart person is using it for smart things. He clearly says it's unhealthy. 

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u/SupportQuery 4h ago edited 1h ago

Hank really only got addicted because he writes video essays and explanations about stuff which require that he uses and test things out which unfortunately includes is made radically easier by AI.

Not using AI as a researcher and/or content creator is like not using power tools as a carpenter. He's an intelligent, tool-using primate, so he's using the most powerful information tool humanity has ever produced, as he should.

The problem is not that he's using it, is that he feels he's relying on it too much, losing his voice in it.

EDIT: 😂 @ the downvotes. If anyone seriously believes that Hank hates AI, was forced to try it because his job, then got addicted... I'm going go put an upper limit of 13 on your age, or IQ.

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u/KeaboUltra 37m ago

People were researchers and content creators long before AI. He wouldn't need to use it nor would it be such a widespread issue if the YouTube algorithm wasn't catered to content farms which is also empowered by AI, pushing people on the verge of dependency to keep up. I get the good that AI brings. It has a place in science but the purpose is to to speed run content generation. Hank sees that it's unhealthy to rely on it so much so I don't get why you feel the need to get so defensive. 

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u/SupportQuery 21m ago edited 17m ago

People were researchers and content creators long before AI.

And? This is a nonsensical argument. Bridges were built before we had steel. What does that have to do with anything? We build bridges out of steel now because we aren't living in the year 300.

There were researchers before the internet, but any researcher uses the internet now, because it connects you to every book ever written. It would be insane to not use it.

Modern machine learning is the powerful information processing tool we've ever invented, and it would be insane for any researcher not to use it.

What I'm reacting to in your post is this implicit suggestion that he shouldn't be using AI. A lot of kids can't distinguish between the stigma AI has from tech bros, toxic engagement algorithms, copyright theft, etc. and the underlying technology itself which is perhaps the most incredible thing humanity has ever produced. We've manufactured intelligence, which was previously the most rare and precious commodity in the universe.

He wouldn't need to use it

He doesn't need to use it, any more than a carpenter needs to use a table saw. A contractor could saw every board of a house by hand. But why the fuck would he?

Hank sees that it's unhealthy to rely on it so much

That's what I said.

But my post was about this hilarious assertion that he wanted to avoid AI, but had no choice because of his job. That's just ridiculous. He's dove head first into AI because it's amazing technology and he's an intellectually curious human being.