The AI Informed Therapist | Event Recap

We Saw a Movie Together

A few weeks ago, a group of therapists in Austin gathered to view The AI-Doc: Or How I Became An Apocaloptimist. When the movie ended and the lights came on, the theater filled with the hum of conversation. Our group was still talking in the lobby, in the hallway, and by the doors. All around us, strangers were doing the same thing. The theater eventually had to usher us out to make room for the next showing.

What Was So Gripping?

Though the filmmaker interviews dozens of experts—ranging from hopeful innovators to skeptical ethicists—the documentary remains anchored in a surprisingly human perspective. We follow his path of angst and discovery as he grapples with the promise and peril of AI through the lens of a husband, son, creative professional, and expectant parent.

The Arc of Integration

The filmmaker moves from overwhelm to fear to cautious engagement. That arc mirrors a process I've been noticing within myself over the past couple of years as I've struggled to understand what AI means for my work, my clients, and my own life.

I suspect many of us have a version of this emotional, cognitive, and existential struggle unfolding within us. I've started to wonder if there's something developmental about it—if we must move through the fear, the grief, and the disorientation to arrive somewhere useful. Perhaps skipping these uncomfortable stages leaves us less informed than we realize.

What the Wide Angle Shows

The movie goes well beyond the technology itself, diving into thorny ethical, geopolitical, and environmental concerns. It sits with the reality that the pace of change is outstripping most people's ability to keep up, and that those most affected often have the fewest resources to adapt.

For clinicians, this matters. AI isn't just a productivity tool or a software update. It is a growing contextual force—a "third party" in the room—that influences our clients’ sense of agency, their anxiety about the future, and the very nature of human connection.

My Takeaways

I expected to walk out of this documentary feeling overwhelmed. I didn't. I walked out feeling energized and focused. Not in a grandiose way, but with the specific clarity that happens when you stop trying to solve the "entire problem" and start working with what you deeply know.

That inspiration and effort to integrate what I learn about AI with the deeply human work of psychotherapy is the purpose of the AI Informed Therapist. Through our nuanced conversations about how AI is showing up in our practices and our lives, we go through this process together.