AI companions are no longer a niche experiment for teenagers in the U.S. A new study from Common Sense Media found that 72% of U.S. teens have tried one at least once, showing how quickly personal chatbot experiences have entered everyday youth culture.
The study focuses on teens ages 13 to 17 and looks specifically at AI chatbots built or used for personal conversation. That matters because this category is different from homework tools, image generators or voice assistants that simply respond to questions.
What counts as an AI companion
In the study, an AI companion means a chatbot used for more personal exchanges. That could include digital AI personas from companies like Character.AI or Replika. It could also include general-purpose systems such as ChatGPT or Claude when teens use them for more personal conversations.
This definition is important because the same technology can serve different roles. A chatbot used to answer a factual question is not the same experience as a chatbot used for virtual friendship, emotional support, therapy or role-playing games.
Common Sense Media’s findings offer an early look at how teens are using AI to simulate human interaction. The study does not treat every chatbot use as identical. Instead, it separates companion-style use from more functional AI assistance.
How often teens are using these chatbots
The headline figure is striking: 72% of U.S. teens said they have tried an AI companion at least once. The study also found that 52% said they are regular users.
Among teens who use AI companions regularly, 13% chat with them daily and 21% chat a few times a week. That means a meaningful share of teen users are not just experimenting once. They are returning to these systems as part of their routine.
The study also found a small gender difference among teens who have never tried an AI companion. Boys, at 31%, were slightly more likely than girls, at 25%, to say they had never used one.
The findings are based on a study that ran during April and May 2025. It used a representative sample of 1,060 teens and was conducted by researchers from NORC at the University of Chicago.
Why teens say they use AI companions
The study points to several reasons teens are engaging with these tools. Some teens approach AI companions as software. Nearly half, 46%, said they saw them as tools or programs.
Others describe the relationship differently. 33% said they use AI companions for social interaction and relationships. That distinction shows why this category is drawing attention: for many teens, the interaction is not only practical.
When asked about purposes, teens gave a range of answers:
- 30% said entertainment.
- 28% said curiosity about AI technology.
- 18% said advice.
- 17% said because they are always available.
Those answers help explain the appeal. AI companions can be used casually, as a source of novelty or amusement. They can also become a place where teens test questions, seek suggestions or keep a conversation going whenever they want one.
Trust, satisfaction and real-life practice
The study also shows that teen use does not automatically mean teen trust. Half of teens, 50%, said they do not trust information from AI companions.
Older teens were less likely to trust AI advice than younger teens. The study reported this difference for older teens compared with younger teens, ages 13 to 14, at 20% and 27%, respectively.
There is also a split in how satisfying teens find these conversations. One-third said conversations with AI companions are more satisfying than conversations with real-life friends. Most teens, 67%, said the opposite.
AI companions are also being used as rehearsal spaces. 39% of teens said they applied skills they first tried with an AI to real-world situations. The most common area was social skills, also at 39%.
Other practiced skills included conversation starters at 18%, giving advice at 14% and expressing emotions at 13%. These findings suggest that some teens are using AI companions not only for escape or entertainment, but also as a place to test forms of interaction before bringing them into daily life.
Why the findings matter
The study arrives amid concerns about AI’s impact on teens’ well-being. The source article notes that Character.AI is being sued over a teen’s suicide in Florida and for promoting violence in Texas. It also points to reports describing the potential dangers of using AI for therapy.
Those concerns make the usage numbers more important. If AI companions are reaching a broad share of U.S. teens, then their role in social, emotional and advisory contexts deserves close attention.
At the same time, the study includes one finding that points away from a simple replacement story. Among teens who used AI companions, 80% said they spend more time with real friends than with their AI chatbots. Only 6% said the reverse was true.
That does not remove the questions raised by AI companions, but it does add balance. For most teen users in the study, AI chatbots have not overtaken real friendships in time spent. The more immediate issue is how these systems fit alongside social life, advice-seeking, entertainment and emotional experimentation.
For parents, educators and technology companies, the core point is clear: AI companions are already part of the teen digital environment. The study shows broad exposure, regular use and a mix of skepticism, satisfaction and practical experimentation among young users.