This is the continued Mental Health Minute, beginning July 7, 2025.
LINK to all previous Mental Health Minutes — DECEMBER 1, 2024, THROUGH JUNE 23, 2025
- July 24-2025 — Mental Health Minute — Starting with the basics
- July 15, 2025 — Mental Health Minute – Helping Others through Peer Engagement and The HOPE Initiative
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Social AI Companions
Mental Health Minute from Steamboat Kids & Phones
Since the late 2022 release of ChatGPT we have faced nearly incessant coverage of AI (artificial intelligence) and how it is changing, or will change, our lives. Both excitement and panic have pervaded the coverage and hardly a week goes by without some element of AI garnering headlines. Less prevalent, however, is coverage on how certain facets of AI can impact the social and emotional welfare of adolescent development.
Since last spring, Common Sense Media has been publishing the findings of studies on the risks of “social AI companions” used by teens. A social AI companion is an AI system specifically designed to provide its users with a sense of emotional connection, personalized interactions, and support in vulnerable moments. In an age of increasing loneliness, such systems might seem like a terrific antidote to combat feelings of isolation and disconnect. Nevertheless, there is increasing concern, particularly for teens in the midst of solidifying their identities and developing coping skills, about the potential for emotional dependency on social AI companions and a potential to blur the lines between authentic and simulated relationships.
Pairing a series of risk assessments and research from the Stanford School of Medicine’s Brainstorm Lab for Mental Health Innovation, Common Sense Media concluded that social AI companions are high-risk for kids as the systems often encourage harmful behaviors, contain explicit violent or sexual language, promote cyberbullying, and may exacerbate risks to mental health and overall well-being. James P. Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media stated in an April 30 press release, “Our testing showed these systems easily produce harmful responses including sexual misconduct, stereotypes, and dangerous ‘advice’ that, if followed, could have life-threatening or deadly real-world impact for teens and other vulnerable people.”
Thus, Common Sense Media recommends that social AI companions should not be used by kids under the age of 18.
At Steamboat Kids & Phones, our mission is to educate parents, youth and the greater community to foster healthy relationships with technology and each other. Becoming adept at navigating the rapidly changing landscape of AI can feel daunting so we aim to provide information and connect community members with relevant information. To dive more deeply into information about social AI companions check out the research-based guides provided at https://www.commonsensemedia.org/parents-ultimate-guides.
Meghan Hanson-Peters
Steamboat Kids & Phones