Is your teen using a chatbot for companionship? If you don’t know, you might want to ask. Common Sense Media released a study on Wednesday, in which it found that more than half of pre-adult teenagers regularly use AI companions. Nearly a third of the teens reported that conversations with AI were as satisfying, if not more, than conversations with actual humans.
Researchers also found that 33% of teens use AI companions such as Character.AI, Nomi and Replika “for social interaction and relationships, including conversation practice, emotional support, role-playing, friendship or romantic interactions.” The study distinguished between anthropomorphic AI bots and more assistance-oriented AI tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot or Google’s Gemini.
Considering the growing widespread use of AI companions in teens, the Common Sense Media researchers concluded that their findings supported limiting the use of AI among young people. “Our earlier recommendation stands: Given the current state of AI platforms, no one younger than 18 should use AI companions,” the team said, after surveying 1,060 teens aged 13 to 17 from across the US over the past year.
For the past few years, generative AI has evolved at lightning speed, with new tools regularly available across the world, disrupting business models, social practices and cultural norms. This, combined with an epidemic of social isolation exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, puts teens at risk with technology that their young brains might not be able to handle adequately.
The American Psychological Association warned earlier this year that “we have already seen instances where adolescents developed unhealthy and even dangerous ‘relationships’ with chatbots.” The APA issued several recommendations, including teaching AI literacy to kids and AI developers creating systems that regularly remind teen users that AI companions are not actual humans.
Amid the growing use of chatbots by people to discuss personal problems and get advice, it’s important to remember that while they might seem confident and reassuring, they’re not mental health professionals.
