What happened when I let ChatGPT make my decisions for a week

In an attempt to learn more about the power and limits of generative AI, our writer let it run his life, from what to eat for lunch to how much screen time to allow his son to how to console a bereaved friend

Alex Meehan lets AI help him decide what to cook. Photo: Mark Condren

Alex Meehan

It’s Sunday evening and I’m about to take a bath when I have the bright idea of watching a movie on my iPad while I soak. It’s something I’ve done many times before, meaning complacency has set in. I balance it at the end of the bath and get ready to climb in when yes, the entirely predictable thing happens.

It’s only under water for a second or two before I pull it out and wipe it off. It seems to be working fine so I have my bath, watch my movie and consider the incident a lucky escape. But the next morning the iPad is dead, and refuses to either turn on or charge.