the hardest product in the world

& the unbearable weight of honest ai.

a friend of mine built an app once, a journaling tool with ai built in. the idea was simple: you write your thoughts, the model reflects back patterns. not just grammar or tone, but truths.

after two weeks in beta, the emails started.

one user wrote: “this thing made me cry. not in a good way.”

another: “i don’t need a therapist that cold.”

someone else: “it told me i seem obsessed with control. is that true?”