A lot of the bro dominated AI writing advice I’ve been reading lately suggests ChatGPT is dangerous. Too agreeable. Too affirming. Too quick to say “Great idea!” to every hare-brained scheme.

But that’s precisely what makes it revolutionary. For women.

Because when you’ve spent your life with an inner critic that dismantles everything you try to build, having a tool that believes in you isn’t dangerous. It’s radical.

For writers, especially women writers, that kind of unconditional early encouragement can be the difference between continuing and quitting.

The Inner Critic vs. the AI Sidekick

For once, the blank page didn’t echo back my doubts. It said, Yes. Say it anyway. I know it will probably gush at first. The feedback is often enthusiastic, sometimes effusive. And I won’t lie, at the start, that made me feel like a genius.

As a woman, that’s a rare and electrifying experience.

Research backs this up: women report significantly higher levels of self-criticism and self-doubt than men. We’re more prone to impostor syndrome. We edit ourselves before we begin. We doubt our authority, question our worth, and silence ideas before they leave the notebook.

Tara Mohr’s Playing Big describes this inner critic well. She writes, “The inner critic speaks up with more viciousness and volume when we are exposing ourselves to a real or perceived vulnerability — something that triggers a fear of embarrassment, rejection, failure, or pain.”

For women, this is often amplified. As Mohr writes, “Playing big — following our callings and dreams — puts us all in a vulnerable place, but for women the stakes are especially high.” We know that speaking up, publishing, creating, and stepping forward often brings criticism, rejection, or judgment, and the inner critic preemptively tries to protect us from that risk by attacking us first.

ChatGPT doesn’t have that voice.