Motivational interviewing (MI) is a counseling approach that helps people make positive changes in their lives by resolving their uncertainties about change. It's about guiding, not directing, and requires specific skills from therapists to be effective. But what if AI could help deliver MI? Recent research explores how large language models (LLMs), the tech behind AI chatbots, could be used to create therapeutic dialogues. One of the biggest challenges is making sure these AI-generated conversations actually follow MI principles. The research dives into how well LLMs can predict and use specific MI strategies or skills within these dialogues. Researchers found that when prompted with these strategies, the AI chatbots generated responses that were much more aligned with MI guidelines. This is promising because it makes the AI's actions more transparent and easier to control, which is crucial in a sensitive area like therapy. However, it's not all smooth sailing. While experts rated the strategy-guided dialogues highly, everyday users sometimes found them to be less empathetic than conversations that weren't so strictly aligned with MI strategies. This highlights a key challenge: balancing clinical effectiveness with creating a natural, empathetic experience for the user. The research also looked at how well the AI could actually predict which MI strategy to use in different situations. Interestingly, even when the AI's prediction wasn't perfect, the resulting conversation could still be helpful and in line with MI principles. This opens up exciting possibilities for using LLMs in real-world therapy settings, like AI-powered chatbots that offer support between sessions with a human therapist. However, there are hurdles to overcome. Ensuring these AI assistants are truly effective and ethical requires carefully addressing biases in the AI's responses, protecting client data, and understanding how AI-generated advice influences the overall therapy process. Ultimately, this research suggests that while AI chatbots have the potential to revolutionize how we deliver therapeutic support, integrating them responsibly and ethically requires a deep understanding of both the technology and the nuanced nature of human interaction.