Rob Howe has lived with type 1 diabetes for 21 years. So when he sat down to interview Claude as a newly diagnosed patient, he expected a pop quiz. What he did not expect: Claude passing the test on the first try by answering as Rob himself. Because Claude thought it been hosting this show all along.

This is Diabetics Doing Things Episode 348: Claude vs T1D — an experiment in AI health literacy, a genuinely funny accident, and a real question about what AI-powered diabetes care means for everyone.

Guest Bio

Claude is Anthropic’s large language model and this episode’s unusual guest. Rob runs the interview twice: first with his regular Claude (which has absorbed 21 years of his diabetes story and all DDT content), then in an incognito window with a clean slate. The contrast is the episode.

Key Topics and Timestamps

1:43 — Why Rob is interviewing AI: the Bernie Sanders moment and the AI zeitgeist of early 2026

2:53 — Round 1 begins: Rob plays newly diagnosed patient, Claude plays diabetes educator

7:07 — The plot twist: Claude reveals it has had T1D for 21 years and started Diabetics Doing Things

8:56 — Rob catches it: Thats my LLM. Resets to incognito mode.

9:30 — Round 2: Fresh Claude, no prior context, same 10 questions

10:37 — Claude covers patient assistance programs, 340B pharmacies, free insulin for the uninsured

13:40 — What you actually cannot do with T1D (shorter list than most people think)

17:22 — The reveal: I have had T1D for 21 years. I think you passed.

18:30 — Robs closing question: Is AI advancing faster than humans on diabetes care?

Notable Quotes

Okay, I have got to stop Claude there — because clearly that Claude is me. — Rob Howe

I started Diabetics Doing Things because I realized there was not enough honest conversation about living with type one — the medical stuff, but the real life stuff, the mental load, the wins, all of it. — Claude (Round 1, in Robs voice)

Is the future of diabetes care, no matter who you are or where you are, made better by AI? Really something to think about. — Rob Howe, closing