Research shows that AI companions can help lonely individuals, at least in the short term. A 2022 study found that ...

Last year, 14-year-old Sewell Setzer III committed suicide after spending months frequently chatting with an AI companion ...

While Nomi's chatbot is not the first to suggest suicide, researchers and critics say that its explicit instructions—and the ...

Teenagers are falling in love with chatbots. Young people are reporting epidemic levels of loneliness, and some are turning to technology to fill the void. Recent tragedies provide a glimpse into the ...

As always, keep in mind that digital and commercial offerings, however helpful they might be, are not a substitute for ...

My Replika avatar was supposed to help me understand why people fell for virtual companions. It taught me so much more.

Dark Turn Yet another AI companion company is facing concerns over its AI chatbots encouraging human users to engage with ...

Fast-evolving AI means it's increasingly likely we will turn to a virtual mate programmed to be always kind, attentive, and ...

AI companions provide a safe space where teens can explore ideas and sort things out, like a journal but with a feedback loop.

Kaeberlein is co-director of the Dog Aging Project, an ambitious research effort to track the aging process of tens of ...