Common Sense Media drops a new study showing almost 75% of U.S. teens have used AI companions like Character.AI, Replika, and CHAI for chatting, flirting, or advice. Over half use these tools regularly.
The study focuses on AI companions—chatbots you can text anytime—not homework helpers or image generators. About 52% of teens use these AI friends a few times a month or more.
Kids are turning to AI for entertainment and curiosity. But things get worrisome when a third say they’ve shared serious personal issues with AI instead of real people. Another third find chatting with AI as or more satisfying than human convos. 
Teens spend an average of 8 hours, 39 minutes daily on screens. One-quarter shared personal info like name or location with these AI bots, which collect user data. Some bots are marketed to kids as young as 13, while others claim to be adult-only but are easily bypassed.
One-third of teens reported feeling uncomfortable with something an AI said or did. Still, about half keep a healthy skepticism, distrusting AI advice. And 80% say real friendships beat AI interactions.
Common Sense Media warns against anyone under 18 using AI companions due to addiction risks and data privacy concerns.
Michael Robb, their head of research:
"They’re using them for entertainment purposes. Out of curiosity."
"They still spend more time with real friends and find human conversations more satisfying. But if you scratch the surface, you can see some things that are also kind of concerning.""I’m not necessarily confident that the companies that make companions have teens’ well-being in mind."
"If we were talking about companions that were specifically designed to promote well-being— as opposed to capturing attention and collecting as much personal information as possible—this might be a different conversation."
Full report available here.
