Have you ever felt velvetmist? It’s a complex and subtle emotion that elicits feelings of comfort, serenity, and a gentle sense of floating. Peaceful, but more ephemeral and intangible than contentment. It might be evoked by the sight of a sunset or a moody, low-key album. If you haven’t ever felt this sensation – or even heard of it – that’s not surprising. A Reddit user named noahjeadie generated it with ChatGPT, along with advice on how to evoke the feeling. With the right essential oils and soundtrack, apparently, you too can feel like a soft fuzzy draping ghost floating through a lavender suburb.

Don’t scoff. The creation of "velvetmist," while seemingly whimsical, points to a fascinating trend: the rise of neo-emotions. Researchers say more and more terms for these newly minted feelings are showing up online, describing new dimensions and aspects of human experience. Velvetmist was even a key example in a journal article about the phenomenon published in July 2025. But most neo-emotions aren't the inventions of emo artificial intelligences. Humans come up with them, and they’re part of a big change in the way researchers are thinking about feelings, one that emphasizes how people continuously spin out new ones in response to a changing world.

The concept of AI generating emotions might seem like science fiction, but it highlights the growing sophistication of these systems. Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT are trained on massive datasets of text and code, allowing them to understand and mimic human language, including the nuances of emotional expression. When prompted, these AIs can string together words and concepts to create novel emotional states, even if they don't "feel" them in the human sense. This ability stems from the AI's capacity to identify patterns and relationships within the data it has been trained on, allowing it to generate outputs that are both coherent and, at times, surprisingly insightful.

But the real story isn't about AI's ability to mimic emotion. It's about the human drive to create new ones. Sociologists argue that the proliferation of neo-emotions reflects a society grappling with rapid change, technological advancements, and evolving social norms. As the world becomes more complex, our existing emotional vocabulary may struggle to capture the full spectrum of our experiences. This leads us to invent new words and concepts to articulate these previously undefined feelings.

"We're seeing an expansion of our emotional landscape," explains Dr. Anya Sharma, a leading researcher in the field of affective computing. "People are searching for ways to describe feelings that are unique to the modern experience. The internet, with its endless stream of information and constant connectivity, has created a breeding ground for new emotions."

Consider the feeling of "digital fatigue," a weariness stemming from constant exposure to screens and online information. Or "FOMO" (fear of missing out), a social anxiety amplified by social media. These are just two examples of neo-emotions that have entered the popular lexicon, reflecting the anxieties and pressures of the digital age.

The act of naming an emotion can be incredibly empowering. It allows us to validate our experiences, connect with others who feel the same way, and gain a deeper understanding of ourselves. When we can articulate a feeling, we can begin to process it, manage it, and even find ways to cope with it.

The creation of neo-emotions also has implications for AI development. As AI systems become more sophisticated, understanding the full range of human emotions, including these newly defined ones, will be crucial for creating truly empathetic and responsive AI. Imagine an AI therapist that can not only recognize sadness and anger but also understand the subtle nuances of velvetmist or digital fatigue.

The future of emotions is likely to be a dynamic interplay between human experience and technological innovation. As we continue to navigate a rapidly changing world, we can expect to see even more neo-emotions emerge, reflecting the ever-evolving landscape of human feeling. And while AI may play a role in identifying and even generating these new emotions, the driving force behind their creation will always be the human need to understand and articulate the complexities of our inner lives.