Artificial intelligence companion apps are marketed as sources of emotional support, friendship, and even romance. But new research from Harvard Business School reveals an unsettling pattern: AI ...
Dr. McBain studies policies and technologies that serve vulnerable populations. On any given night, countless teenagers confide in artificial intelligence chatbots — sharing their loneliness, anxiety ...
Kara Alaimo is an associate professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Her book “Over the Influence: Why Social Media Is Toxic for Women and Girls — And How We Can Take It Back” was ...
De Freitas, Julian, Zeliha Oğuz Uğuralp, and Ahmet Kaan Uğuralp. "Emotional Manipulation by AI Companions." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 26-005, August 2025. (Revised October 2025.) ...