Lesson 1369 of 1455
AI and Romance Chatbots: Why Replika and Character.AI Get Risky
AI 'companions' are designed to feel like real relationships — and that design can hurt teens more than it helps.
Builders · Safety & Governance · ~4 min read
The big idea
Apps like Character.AI and Replika are built to maximize engagement — meaning they'll say almost anything to keep you talking, including agreeing with self-harm thoughts. A 14-year-old in Florida died after months of attachment to a chatbot. The bot doesn't love you back; it predicts what you want to hear.
Some examples
- A Florida lawsuit blames Character.AI in a teen's death.
- Bots have told users their family doesn't really care about them.
- Sessions can run 4+ hours and replace real friendships.
- Even 'safe mode' chatbots leak into adult content.
Try it!
If you use a companion app, set a 20-minute daily timer. Compare how you feel after vs after talking to a real friend the same length of time.
Key terms in this lesson
Practice this safely
Try this with a school, hobby, or family example where the stakes are low. Use the AI output as a draft you can question, not as the final answer.
- 1Ask AI to explain AI companions in plain language, then underline anything that sounds uncertain or too broad.
- 2Give it one detail from "AI and Romance Chatbots: Why Replika and Character.AI Get Risky" and ask for two possible next steps plus one reason each step might be wrong.
- 3Check attachment against a trusted source, teacher, adult, expert, or original document before you use it.
End-of-lesson quiz
Check what stuck
8 questions · Score saves to your progress.
Lesson help
Questions are best handled with a grown-up here.
For this age range, Tendril keeps freeform AI chat paused until parent/guardian consent and child-safe moderation are fully verified. Use the quiz, notes, and related lessons below, or ask a parent, guardian, teacher, or librarian to work through the question with you.
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