Prediction markets claim they’re unlike sportsbooks. For gambling addicts and clinicians, it’s all the same

# Prediction Markets Are Catching People Who Thought They'd Escaped Gambling Prediction markets—platforms where people bet on real-world events like elections or sports outcomes—are being promoted as legitimate investment tools, but gambling addiction specialists say they feel and function exactly like sports betting to their patients. People who have successfully blocked themselves from traditional sportsbooks are finding these platforms just as addictive and are losing significant money on them. The regulatory debate over whether these should be treated like stock exchanges or gambling sites misses the real concern: they appear to trigger the same addiction patterns as traditional sports betting.