Children using AI for companionship, says expert
Digital law expert Emma Sadleir is urging parents to monitor children's AI use amid concerns that pupils are increasingly turning to chatbots for companionship and emotional support.
A digital law expert is urging parents to monitor their children's online activities and limit their access to artificial intelligence chatbots.
" These chatbots are incredibly sycophantic. They will always tell you how wonderful you are, how right you are in every instance. They will be whoever you want them to be."
More children seeking friendship through chatbots
Emma Sadleir says during her regular visits to schools across the country, she has noticed a growing number of pupils using AI chatbots for companionship or even as therapists.
Some children turn to AI to avoid loneliness
She says children may be turning to AI because they feel lonely or struggle to make real friends.
She recalled a conversation she had with a nine-year-old girl last week who told her that her best friend is an AI chatbot.
"And I said, ‘Okay, well tell me about this.’ She said her best friend is a chatbot, and she gives her a pronoun. She [said she] is so nice to her, and she's always available, and she speaks to her whenever she's lonely."
Sadleir believes there is a greater push by technology companies to position AI as a tool for emotional support.
"I've got huge concerns for what that's doing to our children from a social point of view because we are finding these children turning to totally frictionless relationships, which is just not the real world. You know, in the real world, not everybody is going to be available at all times and be nice to you and agree with you on everything.
“And I'm afraid these kids, when they go out into the real world and start trying to have real relationships, they are going have a very, very tough time.
Pope concerned by rapid expansion of AI
Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV has issued a strong warning about the rapid global expansion of artificial intelligence, cautioning against what he describes as a race for more powerful AI systems driven by geopolitical and commercial interests.
Presenting his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas or Magnificent Humanity, at the Vatican, the Pope called for the "disarming" of artificial intelligence and warned that its unchecked development could lead to new forms of slavery.
Leo, the first American pope, cautioned against the pursuit of ever more powerful algorithms and larger datasets in the quest for global dominance.
The launch was attended by leading AI experts, including Anthropic co-founder Christopher Olah, who acknowledged that the incentives facing AI companies can sometimes conflict with doing what is right.
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