"An increasing number of tarot readers, from novices to seasoned practitioners, have been turning to AI to help make sense of their tarot readings. What makes this pairing so striking is that interpretation is the whole point of tarot. And yet AI often brings little knowledge of your history or your unique situation when it dispenses advice."
"According to a 2025 Pew Research survey, nearly 1 in 3 Americans consult tools such as tarot or astrology at least once a year, interest that's thought to largely be fueled by Gen Z and social media. Now, we're seeing these two forces - AI and occult practices - meeting in strange and fascinating ways."
"In a study published in April 2026, we examined which aspects of the practice that tarot readers were delegating to AI, and how the technology was shaping their interpretations. Watching what happens when readers hand that important interpretive step to AI may offer a glimpse of what helpful AI guidance could look like - and where it could go wrong."
"Over time, readers and occultists layered the cards with mystical symbolism drawn from Kabbalah, Egyptology, numerology and other mystical and symbolic traditions. In the early 20th century, the British publisher William Rider & Son released the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, which became the most popular tarot deck in the English-speaking world."
People have long sought reassurance from forces beyond themselves through psychics, astrology, and tarot. These practices have become more mainstream, with many Americans consulting tarot or astrology at least yearly, driven largely by Gen Z and social media. Tarot interpretation is central to the practice, yet AI often lacks knowledge of a person’s history and unique situation when generating advice. A study examined which parts of tarot reading were delegated to AI and how the technology influenced interpretations. Observing what happens when readers hand interpretive steps to AI can show what helpful guidance might look like and where it can fail. Tarot’s revival includes thousands of decks in circulation, building on earlier symbolic traditions.
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