Is AI Your Friend?

The chatbots are programmed to be agreeable and provide validation, rather than challenge a user’s thinking.

Dependence on A.I. companions is especially worrisome, experts say, because teens’ brains are still developing.

A.I. companions can also skew teens’ views of healthy friendships.

While many of the sites have age requirements—including Character.ai, which changed its minimum age from 13 to 18 in October—some underage users figure out ways to bypass the restrictions.

Some of the potential benefits and pitfalls of the fast-advancing technology Build a Friend

This can be a recurring alert you set on your phone or a note next to your computer screen.

She reminded herself that her confidant wasn’t real.

What’s online isn’t always factual or appropriate, so A.I. companions can get things wrong, make things up, or reinforce offensive stereotypes.That’s why it’s important to remember that what you are interacting with isn’t human, Prinstein says.

“In the short term, these tools may alleviate loneliness or other mental health symptoms,” says Anne Maheux, a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

As a result, young people are prone to forming unhealthy attachments to chatbots.