12% of US Teens Use AI Chatbots for Emotional Support, Raising Mental Health Concerns

12% of US Teens Use AI Chatbots for Emotional Support, Raising Mental Health Concerns

According to TechCrunch AI, approximately 12% of US teenagers are using AI chatbots for emotional support or advice. The report indicates that teens are turning to general-purpose AI tools including ChatGPT, Claude, and Grok for this purpose.

Mental health professionals have expressed wariness about this trend, according to the report. The concern stems from the fact that these AI tools were not designed specifically for mental health or emotional support applications. General-purpose chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Grok are built for broad conversational tasks rather than therapeutic or counseling purposes.

The use of AI for emotional support by young people represents a growing intersection between technology and mental health care, though the appropriateness and safety of such applications remain under scrutiny. The report does not detail specific risks or incidents but highlights the disconnect between how these tools are being used by teens and their intended design purpose.

This trend raises questions about the need for either specialized AI tools designed for youth mental health support or clearer guardrails around how general-purpose AI systems interact with vulnerable populations seeking emotional guidance.