ChatGPT sent me to the ER today. It may have saved my life.

Don't panic. Yes, I'm still in the hospital. But I'm in good hands. Let me back up...

For a couple of weeks, I’d had a nagging sense that something was off. After insisting on a primary care physician visit last week, my doctor ran lab tests on Friday and sent me home with a few diet recommendations in the interim.

But by Saturday night, my discomfort was feeling particularly off. At 3 a.m., unable to sleep, I turned to ChatGPT. Together, we came up with a game plan on how to accelerate some diet changes the next day. But by mid-morning on Sunday, I noticed tiny red pinprick spots had appeared on my legs. Alarmed, I kept typing into the same chat window.

“Look at a photo of these red spots on my leg,” I implored, uploading the image file of my leg. “Should I be concerned? I’ve been pushing myself a lot lately. Maybe I’m just not eating well enough?”

With this new information, combined with my doctor’s recommendation on dietary changes, we worked together on a theory of a nutrient deficiency. ChatGPT helped me pick a healthier lunch option and vitamins to boost my immune system. 

But I still felt off (and kept nagging at it).

Next, ChatGPT suggested I ask a physician for some bloodwork. That’s when I remembered—I’d already received my lab results (unceremoniously, via email) late last night. One result was abnormal, I mentioned to ChatGPT.

Which one? It asked.

I uploaded all three lab work panels into the chat. The response surprised me:

Your platelet count is alarmingly low. You should go to the ER urgently.

I hesitated. If it were really that serious, wouldn’t my doctor have called? 

Maybe your doctor hasn’t seen the results yet.

That stopped me. I checked the lab file. At the top, it confirmed: Not yet reviewed by care team.

Trying not to panic, I messaged my doctor, noting my symptoms and the abnormal results.

I was told I’d receive a response in 2-3 business days. So, back to ChatGPT it was. I wanted to know, what should I be looking for if it really is this issue?

Are the red spots getting worse? It wanted to know.

I scanned my body and noticed for the first time an increasing amount of spots on my hands.

Yes, I admitted.

ChatGPT urged me to take action immediately. Specifically, it said:

So, I packed up my bags and hopped in a taxi to the ER.

Zero Platelets: A New Cold Start Problem?

I’m not the only one who’s noticed that AI can effectively help identify medical problems in real time. In one study, ChatGPT alone actually outperformed doctors–including doctors with access to the AI chatbots.

From a patient’s point of view, in addition to flagging the acute and most important problem, I liked ChatGPT’s reassurance, patience, empathy and urgency. I also fully appreciated how AI once again served as a translator or intermediary layer for me. Even without specific prompting, I received the exact wording I needed to use upon arrival at the ER.

As I’ve written about before, finding the right words in a high-stress situation is hard. But knowing exactly which symptoms to flag made all the difference. 

When I arrived at the hospital, I repeated ChatGPT’s exact phrasing to the triage nurse—and was rushed back for bloodwork immediately. Later, a nurse told me that as soon as she saw those two key phrases—low platelets and new red dots on the skin—she knew something was seriously wrong.

It’s a good thing I came in because my ER test results on site were even worse. Since Friday, my platelet count had dropped to zero. By the time I arrived at the hospital, I didn’t have a single one left.

The test result was so absurd that I just started laughing. The nurses and doctors on staff seemed as perplexed by this as I was.

“I’ve only seen this a few times in my career,” one nurse told me.

I stared at her, caught between confusion and disbelief.

“I have to say,” she quickly added. “You look surprisingly good for someone without any platelets.”

(Don’t get me wrong, I like being unconventional, but in the ER? That’s not the place you want to be told you’re rivaling Guinness record-breaking levels.)

They re-ran my test three times. Same result. Another round of bloodwork confirmed it: Platelet count = 0.

“How did you know to come in?” multiple doctors and nurses asked.

“Honestly?” I said. “ChatGPT convinced me.”

Each of them paused. I held my breath, waiting for their reaction.

“Really?” One finally said, with emphasis. Then, a nod. “That’s actually pretty amazing. Good on you. That’s exactly what we want AI to do—help people catch things early.”

In the end, I received an emergency platelet transfusion, multiple IV infusions, a CT scan, and was admitted overnight for monitoring.

And as I write this, I’m (still) not sure my primary care doctor has even looked at my initial lab results from Friday.

Needless to say, something is deeply broken in our healthcare system.

How AI Can Intermediate a Crisis

This is not the first time that I’ve used AI in a crisis. It’s not even the first time that AI has convinced me to visit the ER. (And for the record, both times, it was right.)

But this time, it felt different. This time, ChatGPT wasn’t just a tool—it was with me, step by step. And, of course, this time, the stakes were higher.

As I’ve gathered from the ER staff’s cautious “walking on eggshells” approach around me over the past day or so, you can’t really function without platelets. One bump, one cut, one bandage that won’t hold—and you’re toast. One misstep at the gym or a slip of the knife at dinner, and… well, you get the picture. Yikes...

I know some people think I rely on AI too much. But in moments like this—when I lacked the context to make an informed decision—AI helped me piece together enough detail to recognize the urgency. To escalate. And that escalation? It mattered.

Even after arriving at the ER, I kept using ChatGPT—not just to process my own lab results, but to make sense of the endless stream of medical acronyms and data points flying around me. One that stood out was something called an acuity score, listed next to my name on a clinic-wide dashboard.

I asked ChatGPT what it meant. It explained that my score—a 3—meant I had concerning issues but was generally stable.

Curious, I asked my nurse if my score had been updated after my latest test results.

“I didn’t, but I thought about it…” she admitted. “By the way, you are the first patient I’ve ever had who has asked about that score like this.” 

About an hour later when I checked the boards, I noticed a clear “2” next to my name.

“Our conversation confirmed for me that I should do it,” she admitted.

A wild situation—with AI as the unexpected intermediary between doctor and patient.

Where We Go from Here

Some of you might be surprised that I’m writing about this at all—especially while I’m still living through the consequences of this bizarre medical mystery in real time.

But from where I sit, I’d rather be in the ER writing this post—sharing this story as both a warning and a provocation—than simply sit around and wallow in worry.

The fact that AI can step in when life moves faster than systems—when bad things happen while people are off the clock—isn’t just a party trick for the techno-optimist. It’s an life-saving opportunity. A gap AI is filling, not because it should, but because no one else did. And now that I’m (somewhat) stabilized, I can reflect on what’s really at play here.

In the crypto world, I’ve seen how trust in centralized entities eroded to the point that decentralized finance (DeFi) emerged as the dominant solution for modern builders. People chose to self-custody their assets rather than rely on institutions to hold their crypto wallets. I don’t think we’re at a point where people will fully decouple from the healthcare system—but there’s something incredibly powerful about having a translator tool that tightens the interpretation loop.

What’s been interesting about my current holding pattern in the ER is that my doctors now know I’m seeing my test results before they have time to explain them. They walk into my room aware that I’ve already run the numbers through ChatGPT. And that’s completely changed our dynamic.

My AI conversations ease the emotional gut punch of bad news, give me time to process, and let me prepare more meaningful questions in advance. By the time my doctors step in, I’ve already asked the basic anchoring questions and have come up with a much more discerning list of troubleshooting inquiries and next steps.

That’s something new. And for me? It’s really helping.

(And hopefully, if my AI has anything to do with it, I’ll be out of here in the next 24 hours.)