Doctor AI: Skeptic, absolute believer even though he doesn't know his identity

(Dan Tri) - "AI doctors" appear with professional images, able to explain all kinds of diseases, attracting hundreds of thousands of views. However, the person behind these "doctors" is still a big question mark.

Self-proclaimed virtual doctor, anyone who asks knows anything

Every time she sees health videos appearing on YouTube, Ms. Mai (62 years old) clicks on them and watches attentively.

But besides the content made by real doctors, many of the videos she watches are created entirely by artificial intelligence.

At first, she didn't know it was AI. On the screen is a doctor claiming to have 20 years of experience, wearing a white blouse, neat face, slow voice, clearly explaining the symptoms of the disease and how to prevent it.

"The doctor's advice is helpful, professional, and explains carefully exactly what I want to hear, so I often watch it," Ms. Mai said.

To her, such videos are like a free doctor's consultation right at home. Just turn on your phone and you can hear explanations about all kinds of diseases: from joint pain, blood pressure to diabetes.

Only when he accidentally caught his mother watching a health video did Mr. Duc (38 years old) realize that the character on the screen was not a real doctor but a product created by AI.

At that time, he tried to explain to his mother that she was receiving advice from a non-existent doctor.

"At that time, my mother was surprised, saying she thought it was a real doctor. I had to explain for a long time before she understood," Mr. Duc said.

After that, because he was worried that unverified information could be harmful, he also tried to stop his mother from continuing to monitor and not to believe in completely unfounded advice.

But that is not easy. Ms. Mai still occasionally looks it up when she has health problems and expressed her joy when learning the tips provided by the AI ​​doctor.

Some users praised the "AI doctors", found the consulting content useful and left comments asking for more health advice (Screenshot).

What worried him more was the fact that his mother not only watched but also began to follow some of the advice, such as the tip to completely control high blood pressure without medication.

In fact, not only the above case, many older people today spend hours every day on YouTube and TikTok watching videos of AI doctors, in many cases they do not even realize it is AI.

Some people believe because the information provided sounds quite convincing, the image of a reputable doctor, the friendly way of addressing, and the surrounding background of a realistic clinic.

In particular, they also claim to be doctors with many years of experience, always ready to give advice, so even though no one knows the truth, they can still attract hundreds of thousands of views and praising comments.

Doctor whose identity no one knows

Besides those who believe in AI doctors, many people are also skeptical when watching these videos on social networks.

In addition to being suspicious of the unfounded advice, some users also questioned the identity of the person behind the character appearing on the screen.

Ms. Ha (55 years old) said she had many times seen videos with characters wearing blouses and introducing themselves as doctors with decades of experience.

However, what caught her attention was the fact that this character had almost no confirmed information about his identity.

"I found the tip useful so I left a comment asking for the name of the hospital where the doctor was working, but I didn't get any response and many other people came in and said this was just AI," Ms. Ha recounted.

Some others also noticed that many videos had images and voices that were quite similar to a real-life doctor.

Therefore, they vehemently oppose it and warn others not to trust it without clear scientific evidence.

However, amid the constant stream of videos appearing, not everyone has enough knowledge and alertness to know whether it is AI or enough patience to check the origin of each advice.

As social networks increasingly become a place where people seek answers to medical problems, AI characters with unsubstantiated information have more and more opportunities to reach groups of people in need of information.

When AI turns fake news into "doctor"

This danger is no longer just an assumption. A study conducted by digital marketing company Hallam in the UK showed that about 40% of the most popular health videos on TikTok involve AI.

With some specific search terms like “health tips,” the percentage of videos classified as AI-generated or AI-powered content is up to 84%.

Also according to the research unit, the top videos about doctors and health generated by AI in their search results also average 2.5 million views.

But what is worrying is not only the scale of access but also the content transmitted.

Deepfake accounts designed to look like real doctors have spread many false claims related to cancer, such as saying that heating food in a plastic container in a microwave, using deodorant, or sleeping next to a phone can cause cancer. These claims have been rejected by Cancer Research UK.

AI doctors flood social networks, posing a risk to public health, especially for the elderly (Photo: The Guardian).

Virtual doctors also promote strange cures, including mixing Coca-Cola with onions to relieve pain and recommending an anti-aging product called "Hyalethinap Plus Pro Max".

Notably, a fake character also claimed to have advised patients to use the above product for many years and said that the product could solve many problems such as hair loss, weak skin, brittle nails to joint pain.

Such content is causing special concern to the medical community.

Dr. Emma Runswick, Vice President of the Council of the British Medical Association, warned that AI accounts are spreading medical misinformation and promoting so-called "miracle" cures.

She believes that social media platforms like TikTok need to do more to prevent dangerous fake medical advice, otherwise people could pay the price with their health and even their lives.

However, TikTok has rejected Hallam's research results, arguing that the findings from a marketing company with commercial interests do not accurately reflect the platform.

TikTok claims to remove harmful health misinformation, including AI-generated content, and works with the WHO and NHS to provide trustworthy information.

However, the appearance of "AI doctors" still makes many people worried when this technology, in addition to the ability to create fake information, can also create fake speakers to make that information more trustworthy.