Dartmouth's Therabot was the first clinical trial to show measurable benefits for an AI-powered therapist, particularly for connecting rural patients with human care.
Where this was said
At 30:37 · chapter starts 29:30
Dubner opens this segment with his observation that AI seems to generate Luddite-style hostility at graduation ceremonies across campus America — and Beilock confirms she has seen the same at Dartmouth but isn't surprised. She grounds her response in history: in 1956, a Dartmouth summer conference coined both the term and the field of artificial intelligence [1] — Sian Beilock "In 1956, a Dartmouth summer conference coined the term 'artificial intelligence' and launched the field. Beilock argues that makes Dartmout…" 29:33 , making Dartmouth the self-described birthplace of AI and, in her view, uniquely responsible for thinking through what it means to educate humans in that field's age. She then describes the Anthropic and AWS partnership announced at the start of the year, acknowledging the pushback it generated, before pivoting to the Therabot project: the first clinical trial ever to demonstrate measurable benefits for an AI therapist. That research is now being adapted into Evergreen, a campus chatbot that monitors behavioral signals of anxiety and depression — disrupted sleep, social withdrawal, cessation of exercise — and helps connect students to support before crises escalate.
The term and field of artificial intelligence were born at a 1956 Dartmouth summer conference, making Dartmouth the self-described birthplace of AI.
In 1956, a Dartmouth summer conference coined the term 'artificial intelligence' and launched the field. Beilock argues that makes Dartmouth uniquely responsible for thinking about what it means to educate humans in the age of AI — 70 years later.
Dartmouth's Therabot became the first AI-powered therapist to show measurable clinical benefits, particularly for rural patients. Now Dartmouth is adapting that into Evergreen, a campus chatbot designed to flag warning signs of anxiety and depression in students.
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