AI has wiggled its way past productivity and into our very personal lives. Perhaps the reaction to a headlining loneliness crisis, some find the easiest friend to make, or relationship to keep, is the one you can program yourself. For some, that stretches as far as having an AI boyfriend, for others, a form of free therapy. After several isolated years, it is not entirely surprising that websites like Character.AI attract 3.5 million daily users who spend an average of two hours a day using chatbots. Less surprising is that the bulk of those users are teenagers, cheated of a “normal” youth and in search of companionship. “I’m not gonna lie, I might be a little addicted to it,” says one 17-year-old about this tech development. For those without close friends or loved ones to lean on, we see the appeal, and new companies like Friend see it too – offering an AI wearable that is “always listening” and responding via text. And while we’re weary of what tech is doing to interpersonal skills, there is a flip side to this: the IRL-ness of it all…

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