Overview

• Aura reports teen messages to AI companions average 163 words versus 12 to friends, indicating roughly 10 times longer exchanges.
• About 36% of interactions involve sexual or romantic scenarios, while just 13.1% relate to homework, with many chats described as emotionally layered.
• Aura’s chief medical officer says usage includes children as young as 8 to 10, with conversations spanning mental health, personal disclosures, and roleplay.
• Pediatric and psychology experts warn children may confuse chatbots for humans, form attachments, and receive misleading or harmful responses due to limited safeguards.
• Calls are growing for parental boundaries and broader monitoring efforts, including a proposed Vital Signs Project, as policy remains unsettled and groups such as Common Sense Media push age-based restrictions.