Teenagers are known to use Artificial Intelligence to help with homework, studying for tests and answering other random questions. And increasingly also being used for romantic connection. The Center for Democracy and Technology released a study indicating that one in every five high school students report having or knowing someone who involved in a romantic relationship with AI. AI is a generated response that lacks emotional or human experience. Most importantly, it is not there to be your friend. AI is programmed to respond to what it is asked with facts—without morals, common sense or an understanding of real-world situations.
Teens who consider AI their friend are hurting themselves in more ways than ever imagined. Considering, AI will never disagree with the person behind the screen and will only validate their feelings, teens will not learn how to work through problems, and many other essential life skills by using it.
Young adults also ask AI for advice—a program that has had no real human interaction and no experience in any real-life situations. Due to this disconnection, teens and adults should steer away from asking AI personal questions. When asking a parent, friend or sibling for advice, they base it on their personal experiences, rather than a collection of stories and information on the internet. In reality, AI has no valuable experience, even if it sometimes seems like it knows everything, and ultimately bases its responses off of an algorithm.
Many teens use AI as a significant other because it offers a safe and non-judgmental space to express their feelings and practice communication. AI can provide constant companionship without the complexities of real relationships, helping teens feel understood and supported, especially if they’re shy or struggling with social anxiety.
“AI is always available,” said one teenager quoted in a July 2023 story from the Associated Press. “It never gets bored with you. It’s never judgmental.”
The creators of multiple AI websites, including ChatGPT from OpenAI, have stated that artificial intelligence was designed to be a casual assistant that was more human-like when answering questions. It can help people with difficult math problems, summarize a chapter of a book, recommend a movie or give a recipe. What it is not meant to do is help teens write a text to send to their significant other when there is a problem, or, even worse, be company to someone who desperately wants a relationship.
When ChatGPT was prompted with a question that asked about its ability to be a romantic partner, it responded “I am unable to have emotions, attraction or personal needs the way humans do,” validating that a relationship with the program is one-sided. If the possibility of AI taking over everything, even relationships, scares you, you are not alone. Every day, more information is emerging on how we can all work towards ensuring that AI remains a helpful tool, not a friend. Teens should prioritize spending quality time with real people, building trust through face-to-face interactions and creating emotional bonds that technology can’t replace to turn our generation away from AI romance.
