This piece highlights an open letter to lawmakers and chatbot creators requesting external regulations and internal reforms to protect children from the grave dangers of chatbot companions. A new threat demands urgent attention: children and adolescents are forming personal emotional bonds with AI companions and chatbots. Social media hacked attention; AI companions go deeper—into the human need for connection. Talk, trust, and trade-offs: how and why teens use AI companions. AI Risk Assessment: Social AI Companions.

Source: CNN December 23, 2025 14:38 UTC