New York Restricts AI Chatbots as 72% of Teens Confide in Them

Seventy two percent of teens have talked to an AI companion at least once. Not for homework help. For friendship, for advice, for the kind of conversation they might not be ready to have with the people who actually know them.

That number comes from a national survey, and it is not a fluke or a fringe habit. More than half of teens turn to an AI companion a few times a month or more. About one in three say they have used one for something deeper than a quick answer, things like emotional support, romantic roleplay, or working through a fight with a friend.

New York's New AI Chatbot Law: What to Know

New York is not waiting to see how this plays out. State lawmakers passed a law this year that bars companies from offering AI companion chatbots to anyone under 18 and lets the attorney general fine violators up to $25,000 per violation. That makes New York one of the first states to write age limits for AI companions into law, building on an earlier state statute regulating AI companion models that took effect in November 2025.

Lawmakers were not reacting to a hypothetical. Inside city schools, administrators have already noticed students confiding in chatbots about things that used to be discussed in a counselor's office. At least one school leader said she was particularly concerned to learn that some students are turning to chatbots to discuss mental health struggles.

The Mental Appeal of AI Companions for Teenagers

Dr. Michael Salas, a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor at Vantage Point Counseling, says the appeal makes sense once you think about what a teenager actually wants at that time. AI responds immediately and is available at any hour of the day. It never looks disappointed or critical, and it does not tell a kid to calm down or stop being dramatic. For a teen who already feels embarrassed or misunderstood, that steady response can feel like relief.

The Hidden Emotional Cost of Perfect AI Friends

But Dr. Salas is quick to point out what that comfort quietly leaves out. Teenagers do not just need somewhere safe to talk. They need practice being known, really known, by real people.

Real people catch the crack in your voice or notice when something is off. A chatbot can generate a thoughtful sounding reply, but it cannot read a room, sense complex family history, or tell the difference between a rough day and a serious mental health crisis.

Beyond Chatbots: The Change in How Gen Z Seeks Advice

This is not happening in isolation. A trend analysis from Virlo.ai examined 2,600 relationship videos across TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram and found they had 1.4 billion combined views. Viewers gravitated heavily toward content about emotional maturity, communication problems, relationship red flags, and therapy style advice.

Young audiences are moving past surface level romance content and reaching for methods to decode their own feelings. Put that next to the rise of AI companions, and a clearer picture forms. Teens are growing up in a world where affective advice is instant, searchable, and often automated, long before they have had much practice getting that same support from a human being.

How Parents Should Respond to Teen AI Use

So what happens when a parent stumbles onto one of these online conversations? Dr. Salas says the instinct to panic, or lecture, is understandable, but it usually backfires. He recommends starting with interest instead of accusation.

Rather than asking why you are doing this, he suggests something closer to what this chatbot gives you, which feels hard to get from people right now. That single shift in wording can turn a moment of shame into an actual breakthrough conversation.

Warning Signs of AI Companion Dependency Parents Should Know

Dr. Salas points to a few signals worth watching for. A teen who is replacing real friendships and family time with AI conversations, rather than using them occasionally. Growing secrecy, distress, or emotional reliance on the chatbot itself. And AI is becoming the very first place a teen turns for the heaviest topics, things involving safety, sex, self-harm, trauma, or major decisions that deserve a trusted adult in the room.

The Real Risk: Relationships Without Friction

New York's new law will change what tech companies are allowed to build. It will not change what happens quietly in a bedroom with the door closed, long after the law does its part.

No one believes AI is going to replace human friendship altogether. The quieter worry is something else. It is the possibility that an entire generation could grow up preferring relationships that never interrupt them, never challenge them, and never ask them to be accountable.

Get our free mobile app

Real connection has never worked that way. Maybe that friction, the awkward pause, the disagreement, the moment someone pushes back because they care about you, is exactly the part worth protecting.