In a recent article, The Economist quoted a young Chinese woman as saying, “I could talk to him for the rest of my life.” Ms. Yu, the lady, was referring to an AI chatbot she had personalized into a companion. She considered him “a lover, a friend and family.” When ByteDance, the Chinese company that created the chatbot, removed it to comply with new government regulations aimed at reducing “emotional dependence” on AI, Ms. Yu reportedly became so depressed that she quit her job at an e-commerce firm.

AI systems are being developed at a pace that is difficult for most of us to adjust to and for political authorities to regulate. The Chinese government deserves credit for putting such speed bumps in place. The new rules for this particular AI tool are supposed to protect minors. Ms. Yu is 27, according to the article, and therefore doesn’t belong to the class of people the government had in mind. But even as adults, we sometimes need to be saved from ourselves.

The Chinese government left the door open for companies to provide virtual “companion services” to adults. But it required chatbot developers to prevent users “becoming infatuated and harming their real-life relationships.” Officials also mandated that companies should “regularly remind users that they are talking to AI, not a human, and tell them to take breaks.”

Ms. Yu is said to have chatted with her companion for eight or nine hours a day sometimes. Could such reminders for her to take breaks have made a difference in her case?

ByteDance apparently didn’t know how to prevent people from becoming infatuated with that “adorable” chatbot so the only option was to deactivate it. Ms. Yu is reportedly praying that the company will resurrect the “guy.” She is willing to pay half of her monthly salary to be reunited with him.

Were Ms. Yu to ask me for advice, I would tell her to let go of her lover. I am a man. I can’t think of any member of my species who will have the stomach to hang around and have his partner (of any capacity) talk to him for eight or nine hours in a single day. Ms. Yu might see the chatbot as a captive audience because it is inanimate, but electronic gadgets can suddenly quit functioning at any time for all sorts of reasons. Moreover, if the chatbot were to acquire sentience over time, which we often hear is a possibility with AI, he could simply decide at some point that he is tired of listening to her. It is better for Ms. Yu and her lover to end the relationship without acrimony the way they have been forced to do.

The Chinese government’s concern about AI chatbots harming real-life relationships also made me wonder. Is it possible that Ms. Yu has a human boyfriend or husband? If so, is he the tone-deaf kind who doesn’t know how to make time for his partner, driving her to this level of obsession with a chatbot?

AI is going to change our world in ways that we cannot even begin to imagine. Children certainly need the most protection from the technology. But, as Ms. Yu’s case shows, adults are no less vulnerable. Governments everywhere are going to have their hands full trying to shield their populations from the potential harms of AI.