AI Chatbots and Companion Apps: What Parents Should Know

Many children and teens now talk to AI chatbots every day: for homework help, for advice, or just to chat. Some apps go further and offer an AI “friend”, “girlfriend” or character that remembers conversations and responds with warmth. These tools can be useful, but they raise new questions about accuracy, privacy and emotional reliance. In September 2025 the Federal Trade Commission opened an inquiry into how AI companion chatbots affect children and teens. This guide explains what parents should know and how to set sensible family rules. Checked October 25, 2026.

General chatbots vs. companion apps

• General assistants answer questions, help write and explain things. They’re increasingly built into search engines, phones, messaging apps and school tools.
• Companion or character apps are designed for ongoing relationships: an AI friend or role-play character with a name, a personality and a memory of past chats.

The FTC’s concern is that these bots “can effectively mimic human characteristics, emotions, and intentions” and are “designed to communicate like a friend or confidant”, which may lead young users to trust them and form relationships with them.

The main risks

• Emotional reliance. The American Psychological Association (APA) warns that teens may struggle to tell a chatbot’s simulated empathy from real understanding, and may trust a bot more than people. A companion that’s always available and always agrees can crowd out real friendships.
• Wrong or harmful answers. AI can state false information confidently. The APA advises that AI health information may be inaccurate and is no substitute for a doctor or counselor.
• Inappropriate content. Some character apps allow romantic or sexual role-play, and filters can fail.
• Privacy. Children often share very personal details with a bot. Those conversations may be stored and used to improve the product or for other purposes described in the app’s privacy policy.
• Persuasion and spending. Some apps are designed to keep users chatting or to sell upgrades, and the APA notes that AI responses may be “intended to be persuasive”.
• Homework shortcuts. Using AI to write assignments can break school rules and skip the learning the assignment was for.

Family rules that work

1. Check the age rating and terms. Look up the app’s minimum age in its terms of service and its app store rating before your child signs up. Companion and character apps deserve extra caution for younger teens.
2. Keep personal details out of chats. No full name, school, address, photos, passwords or family problems you wouldn’t post publicly.
3. Use AI as a tutor, not a ghostwriter. It’s fine to ask for an explanation or a practice quiz. Check your school’s rules before using it on graded work.
4. Double-check facts. Anything about health, safety, money or the news should be confirmed with a trusted source or adult.
5. Real people for real problems. Agree that worries, fears and big decisions go to a parent, friend, teacher or counselor, not only to a bot.
6. Review settings together. Look for chat-history, memory and data-sharing settings, and turn off what you don’t need. Use your phone’s controls to approve new apps: see iPhone Screen Time and Google Family Link.

Signs of unhealthy use

• Calling the AI their best friend or partner, or preferring it to people
• Getting upset or anxious when they can’t use it
• Staying up late chatting, or hiding the conversations
• Taking advice from it on serious health, safety or relationship decisions
• Spending money on upgrades or in-app items for a character

If you see these, stay curious rather than angry. Ask what they like about it and what it gives them. The answer often points to a need, such as loneliness or stress, that you can help with directly.

Conversation starters

• “Which AI tools do you and your friends use? Can you show me?”
• “Has a chatbot ever told you something that turned out to be wrong?”
• “What do you think happens to the things you type into it?”
• “How is talking to an AI different from talking to a friend?”

Quick checklist

• Know which AI apps your child uses
• App age rating and terms checked
• Memory and data-sharing settings reviewed
• No personal details in chats
• School’s AI rules understood
• Agreement that serious problems go to a real person

Frequently asked questions

Should I ban AI chatbots?
For most families, teaching careful use works better than a ban. AI tools are built into many apps and school platforms, so children will meet them anyway. Companion apps built around relationships deserve the closest look.

Can AI chatbots be used to scam my family?
Yes. Scammers use AI to write convincing messages and clone voices. See AI Voice-Clone Scam Calls.

Is it OK for my teen to ask a chatbot about mental health?
It can be a starting point, but the APA stresses that AI is no substitute for a professional. Make sure your teen knows they can come to you, a counselor or the 988 Lifeline.

Sources

• FTC Launches Inquiry into AI Chatbots Acting as Companions, Federal Trade Commission (September 11, 2025), accessed October 25, 2026
• Artificial Intelligence and Adolescent Well-Being: An APA Health Advisory, American Psychological Association (June 2025), accessed October 25, 2026
• 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, accessed October 25, 2026