--- title: "Influential Tech Founder Says His Peers Are Suffering From Mass AI Psychosis" description: "Aaron Levie, founder and CEO of cloud computing firm Box has a unique take on why his peers are so gung-ho about AI." date: "2026-05-28" modified: "2026-05-28" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/influential-tech-founder-box-ai-psychosis" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Brain" - "Ethics" - "Health & Medicine" - "Mental Health" --- # Influential Tech Founder Says His Peers Are Suffering From Mass AI Psychosis ![A person sitting with their head in their hands, appearing distressed or overwhelmed. The image has a glitch effect with horizontal digital distortion and color separation, giving it a fragmented and intense visual style. The person is wearing a light-colored shirt and has short hair.]() *Shutterstock / Futurism* It's no secret that many of the world's top CEOs are obsessed with AI. By pursuing lofty goals of complete AI automation, these executives have created one of the [largest financial bubbles]() in recent memory while transforming the job market into a [barren wasteland](), with [little to show]() for their efforts so far. As the top tech companies have yet to find a way to turn AI into a profitable venture, those decisions to go all-in on AI are looking [increasingly delusional](). According to Aaron Levie, CEO and founder of the massive cloud computing company Box, there's a simple explanation for it: many of his colleagues are suffering from AI psychosis. "CEOs are uniquely prone to AI psychosis because they're sufficiently distant from the last mile of work that still has to happen to generate most value with AI," Levie [wrote on X-formerly-Twitter](). Translation: AI-happy CEOs are out of touch with the rank-and-file workers tasked with making their AI ambitions come to life. As an example, Levie offers cases in which corporate executives say "look I made this awesome product prototype" with an AI chatbot. "Yes but you didn't have to review the code before it went into production and fix a bunch of issues," he retorts. Whether "AI psychosis" is the best metaphor for this concept is up for debate. Arguably the most common definition of AI psychosis is that it's a phenomenon where extreme interactions with AI triggers or amplifies delusions or paranoia, sometimes already existing and sometimes seemingly newly cooked up with the AI. The symptoms can be extreme, with AI chatbots convincing victims that they're communing with [God-like entities](), or have singlehandedly uncovered a [grave threat to humankind](). There are indeed some executives who seem to fit the bill. Last year, [*Futurism* reported]() that colleagues of Geoff Lewis, managing partner of the multi-billion dollar investment firm Bedrock, were concerned that he was suffering from a break with reality after spending too much time with ChatGPT (ironically, Bedrock was an early investor in OpenAI.) In that case, Lewis had claimed to be mapping an incomprehensible "non-governmental system" that was designed to disrupt his life. That said, there's a major gap between an exec believing they're targeted by a vast conspiratorial network and an exec buying into AI hype. The phenomenon Levie is identifying might better fall under "organizational blindness," a [known phenomenon]() where leaders of a company find themselves disconnected from the reality of work on the ground. Coupled with a ravenous hunger for profit, this kind of tunnel vision seems to be exactly what we're seeing in companies [around the]() [globe](). In today's world, many executives and managers operate at an abstract level, working via spreadsheets, emails and Zoom meetings. This is different from concrete labor, meaning the specific, friction-heavy tasks that workers perform, like writing code or wiring server racks. When a board-room full of executives loses sight of this tangible labor — by failing to consider the kinds of tasks AI chatbots are actually good at, for example — it can certainly create a [break from material reality](), though one driven by social factors rather than psychological. In other words, there are two possibilities: either the world's CEOs are losing their minds, or they're just succumbing to the [latest manifestation]() of capitalism run amok. Occam's razor probably suggests the latter. **More on AI and CEOs:** *[99 Percent of CEOs Are Preparing to Lay Off Workers and Replace Them With AI Within Two Years, Survey Finds]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()