Overview
- The Youth Endowment Fund surveyed more than 11,000 13- to 17-year-olds in England and Wales and found 25% used AI chatbots for mental health support in the past year.
- Among teenagers affected by serious violence, 38% of victims and 44% of perpetrators reported turning to chatbots for support.
- The research found racial disparities in uptake, with Black children twice as likely as white children to use AI for mental health help.
- Young people described turning to chatbots for perceived privacy, constant availability, and fewer judgments than conventional services with long waits.
- NHS leaders caution that chatbots can give harmful advice and should not replace therapy, while OpenAI faces lawsuits over teen deaths and says it is adding safeguards to detect distress and direct users to real-world help.