Human Connection Is the Core of Coaching—and No Chatbot Can Replace It

Neil Parikh, the Casper founder, recently launched Slingshot AI, a chatbot designed to replicate the experience of working with a psychotherapist—or a coach. Forbes notes his own reflection: “Then I found a therapist who changed my life.”

Here’s the irony: what changed his life wasn’t the conversation itself—it was the presence of a human being who could notice, challenge, and hold space for him. That relational spark is the engine of transformation.

As a Licensed Master Social Worker and ICF-ACC coach, I see it every day. Techniques, models, and interventions only matter when delivered within a human relationship. Someone who can hear what’s unsaid, push back on recurring excuses, and celebrate brave steps forward—that’s what creates growth.

AI can support the work. Chatbots can offer nudges, track progress, or provide accessibility outside sessions. But they cannot replicate the subtlety of human presence—the hesitations, the energy, the celebration of small victories.

Access to support is limited. Parikh is right about that. But mistaking conversation for transformation misses the point entirely. Coaching and therapy are relational—they require people. Human connection isn’t a feature. It is the work.

Casper made mattresses easy because buying one is transactional. Coaching and therapy? That’s not a transaction. That’s a relationship. And relationships, by definition, require humans.