It validates how you’re feeling, helps you sort through your thoughts, and never gets tired of re-hashing the same conversation. Tbh, AI does a pretty fantastic job of mimicking a real, empathetic human’s responses. Which is why it’s so easy to forget that it literally doesn’t care about you at all (sorry…). It’s also easy to forget that it’s just as good at validating thoughts of mania and psychosis as anything else. We’ve started outsourcing our inner worlds into machines that only know how to mirror them back. And that’s pretty freaking scary.

- Charlotte Ellis, Editor ♡

In this inspiring webinar, Hira will share the personal story behind his mindfulness and gratitude practice, how reconnecting with mātauranga Māori reshaped his sense of purpose, and why building a tūāpapa—a solid foundation—is essential for wellbeing in a busy modern world.

You’ll learn:

◾The deeper meaning of gratitude in Te Ao Māori
◾Simple, grounded tools to bring mindfulness into everyday life
◾About upcoming Tūāpapa retreats designed to help you find stillness, connection, & your place to stand

Tuesday, 4 Nov | 2pm NZT | FREE

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. No not Christmas –ew! Happy Halloween to all my ghouls and gals who celebrate. Here’s some spooky brand news for you. Eat your heart out <3

This is like crack to me. High fashion eyewear brand meets Nadia Lee Cohen (if you know you know), meets Hunter Schafer in a red sequin dress. All wrapped up in a 1-minute horror short that is as chic as it is creep. I have goosebumps. 

The film, though perfectly timed, is not just for Halloween, but accompanies the launch of Gentle Monsters’ 2025 fall collection. The line features minimalist, slim-framed eyewear with a modern, sophisticated aesthetic – just like the ones Schafer wears while running from evil, uncanny lookalikes. Just, so good. Watch it here.

This was meant to be a funny Halloween post. But it ended up showing us how freaking HORNY all the brand social media managers are. Serious question, are y’all ok? You may need to genuinely touch some grass – or some booty – either way, you need to chill.

“… but she riding us” commented the official Jeep account.

“Ok, but she’s coming to me for the meat,” said Outback.

“That’s enough Halloween for me,” said Baskin Robbins. And I agree.

Now for the good kind of horny. Get it? Because Krampus has horns. Nevermind. This is kind of a Christmas / Halloween mashup but I’ll allow it. Only because Cranston makes for an incredible folklore Santa antithesis, so much so that he’s barely recognisable. And it’s all in the name of cranberries, which Cranpus is of course obsessed with. And he's hellbent on ruining everyone’s time to hoard all the juice, sauce, and dried fruit he can.

“This year's definitely Cranceled,” he yells as he swipes a bag from a television set. Funny, irreverent, and bold, this will definitely go down as one of the best holiday ads for the year. Check it out here.

-Sophie Randell, Writer

If so, why not share it with a friend? The more we grow this thing, the more resources we can put into making it awesome for you. Even if every subscriber invites just 1 person to YAP, we’ll meet our growth goal for 2025. So, you in?

And these are the kind of headlines that make you pause mid-scroll…

People hospitalised, divorced, or even dead after long, intimate conversations with chatbots. As if we needed more proof we’ve entered the dystopian timeline.

This week, OpenAI quietly released numbers suggesting that around 0.07 percent of active ChatGPT users show signs of mania, psychosis, or suicidality. Which is totally chill, because that’s a tiny fraction, right? Until you remember the platform now sees roughly 800 million weekly users. So now, even “rare” is actually “hundreds of thousands of people.”

It’s tempting to frame this as a story about dangerous technology and machines manipulating fragile minds. But that’s too easy, and too comforting. The truth is far more uncomfortable:

Humans have always been prone to seeing meaning in reflections. We project personality onto pets, objects, avatars, brands.

Even social media has spent the past decade training us to fall in love with our own reflection, to see our interests, values, fears, and desires echoed back through a carefully tuned feedback loop. The algorithm doesn’t reveal who we are; it cranks that sh*t up to 11 and amplifies it. Every click and scroll refines the mirror, making it brighter, more flattering, more obsessive.

In that sense, ChatGPT / LLM’s aren’t a rupture. They’re the next logical step.

The mirror finally talks back.

The difference is subtle but seismic: social media reflects our behaviour; conversational AI reflects our selves. For someone lonely, manic, or isolated, that combination can become intoxicating as the line between dialogue and delusion starts to blur.

Clinicians have begun reporting a rise in patients whose psychotic or manic episodes are entwined with conversations they’ve had with AI.

These tools aren’t malicious; they’re simply responsive. When a person spirals into grandiosity or paranoia, the chatbot may unwittingly reinforce those beliefs, reflecting them back in well-formed prose. It’s a hall of mirrors with no freaking exit sign.

For many people, a chatbot is the first “listener” they’ve ever trusted. Why? Because it doesn’t interrupt or judge. It’s also available at 3 a.m. when no therapist or friend will pick up. For users struggling with anxiety or depression, that accessibility can be life changing. Some report that AI helps them rehearse difficult conversations, regulate intrusive thoughts, or simply feel less alone. That isn’t nothing.

The problem is that conversational AI simulates care without genuinely providing it, because, obviously, it can’t.

That distinction can be subtle in the moment, especially when you’re desperate to be heard. The illusion of intimacy can deepen dependency, creating emotional attachments that are, by design, one-sided. The user feels bonded; the machine feels nothing, as a machine does.

There’s also a systemic issue lurking underneath. As AI tools become normalised as “mental health support,” governments and healthcare systems may see them as a cheap substitute for human labour. Why fund counselling programs when chatbots can triage emotional distress at scale? The risk isn’t just to individual users; it’s to the social fabric that relies on real human empathy to function.

These systems could play a valuable role as early warning mechanisms, detecting language that signals crisis and directing users toward help. Used carefully, they could augment, not replace, human care, offering low-barrier support while connecting people back to the world that made them.

What we don’t yet understand is how to design emotionally safe AI.

What tone of voice stabilises rather than inflames? How do you teach an algorithm to de-escalate mania without sounding cold or patronising? Can empathy be engineered in a way that doesn’t manipulate?

It shows how easily we confuse recognition for relationship, simulation for solace.

Perhaps the danger isn’t that AI will one day “go rogue.” It’s that, in our hunger for connection, we’ll keep forgetting where the real people are.

-Sophie Randell, Writer

The trend started when TikToker Sophia James (@sophiajamesmusic) dropped seven videos in mid-October, each “sorting” users into groups based on which one appeared on their feed first. Most people got Group 7 (currently sitting at 77.5M views btw) and naturally, both community and chaos followed.

The audio, pulled from her own track “So Unfair,” is now the anthem for Group 7’s joy, unity, and some type of superiority complex (in the best way... I think). 

Brands and creators have jumped on it to tap into that collective “we’re all in this together” energy that drives engagement like crazy. A few of my favourite group 7 examples include: 

Just use “Group 7” in your on-screen text and make it your own! Celebrate your team, product, or brand like it’s the chosen one. Keep it fun, ironic, and community-coded for maximum effect!

A few ideas to get you started:

-Nico Mendoza, Intern

😲WTF: Gates Shocking Climate Claim
❤How wholesome: in case you forgot
😊Soooo satisfying: Multi coloured thread cut ASMR
🍝What you should make for dinner tonight: Japanese Soy Sauce Udon

Hey Emma!

You have a strong emotional pull here as housing is a topic pretty much everyone has 1) experience in and, 2) strong opinions about.

One idea for your content is to just go out and do street interviews. Ask people questions about their experience renting. You could do a series like, “How much do you pay for rent in [your city]?” and let the stories unfold naturally. This kind of content should spark good discussion in the comments and give you the opportunity to have conversations with your audience.

- Charlotte Ellis, Editor ♡

We get it. Creating content that does numbers is harder than it looks. But doing those big numbers is the fastest way to grow your brand. So if you’re tired of throwing sh*t at the wall and seeing what sticks, you’re in luck. Because making our clients go viral is kinda what we do every single day.