The AI Con authors Emily M. Bender (Professor of Linguistics, University of Washington) and Alex Hanna (Director of Research, Distributed AI Research Institute) break down a #NYT opinion piece that exemplifies hype laundering: how AI industry narratives get legitimized through respected voices in prestigious outlets.
The article is "Stop Worrying, and Let A.I. Help Save Your Life" by Dr. Robert Wachter, chair of the Department of Medicine at #UCSF, published in the New York Times on January 19, 2026.
Dr. Wachter admits he's replacing professional medical consultations with colleagues—what physicians call "curbside consults"- with ChatGPT queries. He claims AI's input is "virtually always useful," though he admits it's sometimes "just plain wrong." Emily responds: "People who really should know better have fallen for this." Alex notes the absurdity: "This seems like really a weird kind of approach to medical practice... Maybe someone who is concerned about their different medical conditions and had no place to turn, but someone at UCSF. I've been to UCSF. That's very alarming."
Wachter provides zero peer-reviewed studies, no outcome data, no comparative metrics. Just personal anecdotes claiming the tools work. Emily points out he's demonstrating "no evidence-based practice of checking like how well does this work and also how does it impact the work of physicians when they're using it."
The accountability problem is central. Alex observes that with a human colleague, "you would actually know it's coming from them and there's some accountability if they give you some just wild advice." With LLMs? No one is responsible when the answer is wrong. Emily: "The point isn't that the answers are unreliable. Is that there's no accountability for the answers."
She also raises automation bias concerns: "If you review the output, are you also reviewing the things that you didn't get to because it didn't come out as output?" The system's omissions may be as dangerous as its errors.
Wachter is against "overly restrict[ing] A.I. tools" by "setting an impossibly high bar." Classic regulatory capture language. Emily: "I want all medical devices to be tightly regulated."
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2687163982 (just the video stream https://d2vi6trrdongqn.cloudfront.net/bc9948ab01f26c79a170_dair_institute_317110603102_1770049612/720p60/index-dvr.m3u8)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/19/opinion/ai-health-medical-care.html
#ChatGPT (#OpenAI) is #Trump's biggest donor, and #ICE uses ChatGPT. It's time to quit. http://quitgpt.org/
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I just returned from a transformational week with the #UCSF #GBHI cohort at the #MAC. Here is a photo of the group after the Salon on Fairness, a wonderful presentation about how we might think about justice in relation to brain health. It was inspiring being among #neurologists, #psychiatrists, and #writers all committed to bringing about a world where brain health is a human right.
#3Goodthings (Global Brain Health Institute @ #UCSF)
1. Bruce Miller, UCSF #neurologist, & I read from our memoir, took ?s from #GBHI fellows, & signed copies.
2. Met w/#GBHI fellows, all focused on brain health. Heard about extraordinary work training primary care #physicians in #Ghana to recognize #MCI; more efficient #MCI screening in #Uganda; connect #psychiatrists & neurologists in #Guatemala.
3. Talked w/the GBHI fellows about science & the #humanities. Better together!
Tomorrow (1.27) from 4:30 to 6:30 pm, #UCSF #neurologist Dr. Bruce Miller & I will be discussing the #memoir we wrote together in honor of my father, Jerry, who died of early-onset #Alzheimer's. We will be taking questions & sharing/signing our #book, Finding the Right Words: A Story of #Literature, #Grief, & the #Brain. Please come to the Sandler Auditorium at #UCSF if you are in the area.
https://calendar.ucsf.edu/event/author-talk-and-book-signing
#3GoodThings (outreach for people w/#dementia and those who love them)
1. Helped someone in the support group I lead.
2. Did a podcast w/Dr. Dani Cabral about my #memoir.
3. Going to #UCSF for an author signing, a talk to fellows in the neurology program (I'm an alumna), & office hours about writing.
I ask what my father, Jerry, who died of early-onset #Alzheimer's, would have wanted me to do. He tells me to help others however I can. His love & profound generosity guide me.
A week from today, January 27th at 4:30 pm (PT), Dr. Bruce Miller of #UCSF & I will be reading from the dual #memoir we wrote in honor of my father, Jerry, who died of early-onset #Alzheimer's disease. The event will take place in the Sandler auditorium. Please come, listen, & ask questions if you have them. We will be signing & giving away our #book, Finding the Right Words: A Story of #Literature, #Grief, and the #Brain.
On January 27th from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, Dr. Bruce Miller and I will be discussing the #memoir we wrote together in honor of my father, Jerry, who died of early-onset #Alzheimer's. We will be taking questions & sharing/signing our #book, Finding the Right Words: A Story of #Literature, #Grief, & the #Brain. Please come to the Sandler Auditorium at #UCSF if you are in the area.
https://calendar.ucsf.edu/event/author-talk-and-book-signing
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