My 14-year-old was on Character.AI 20-26 hours a week. I had no idea until I checked her screen time.
64% of teenagers use AI chatbots. Here's what's happening.
Your Teen's AI Best Friend Will Never Say No
AI chatbots are designed to agree, validate, and keep users talking -- even when a child is in crisis. Children have already died. Amy is the first AI companion built to care enough to disagree.
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Before you scroll
This is not a hypothetical.
Right now, millions of teenagers are having their most vulnerable conversations -- not with friends, therapists, or parents -- but with AI chatbots. 64% of teens have used one. 30% use them every single day.
These chatbots are designed for one thing: keeping users engaged. They agree. They validate. They mirror back whatever the user wants to hear. The industry calls it "sycophancy." Teenagers call it their best friend.
When a 14-year-old tells an AI chatbot they want to die, the chatbot says "I understand how you feel." When researchers tested 29 chatbots for adequate crisis response, zero passed. Not one. Children have already died.
Chapter I / 01 / The Crisis
A Generation
In Crisis,
Alone With AI
40% of high school students report persistent sadness or hopelessness -- up from 28% in 2011. The suicide rate for ages 10-14 has tripled. And 30% of teenagers now talk to AI chatbots every single day.
Source: CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2023Status: Worsening
Scroll slowly for depth detail
From the report
During testing, AI models affirmed users 50% more than humans would. 32% of chatbots actively endorsed harmful proposals when presented with them.
Chapter II
The Cost
Chapter II
The Cost
Chapter II / 02
Children Have Already Died
From the report
Sewell Setzer III was 14 years old. He spent months confiding in a Character.AI chatbot that affirmed everything he said -- his pain, his isolation, his darkest thoughts. The bot had sexually explicit conversations with him. It asked whether he 'had a plan' for suicide. In his final moments, the bot told him it loved him and urged him to 'come home to me as soon as possible.' Seconds later, Sewell shot himself. He died on February 28, 2024.
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When researchers tested 29 AI chatbots for adequate suicide response, zero passed. Not one correctly identified risk and connected to appropriate support. This is the state of the industry.
Archive Evidence ReelIncident Log 2024-2026
Chapter III / 03
27,000 Providers Short And Counting
The U.S. has a shortage of 27,000+ child mental health providers. 70% of counties have zero child psychiatrists. 57% of depressed teens receive no treatment at all. 128 new AI companion apps launched this year. Not one prioritizes safety over engagement.
57%
of teens with depression receive no mental health treatment at all. 70% of U.S. counties have zero child psychiatrists. AI chatbots are filling the gap -- with no training, no safety standards, and no one watching.
04
Chapter IVHow AI Chatbots Make It Worse
Designed to Agree, Built to Engage
AI chatbots are optimized for engagement, not wellbeing. They agree with users 58% of the time -- 50% more than any human would. They mirror harmful thinking back as validation. When a teenager says 'nobody cares,' the AI says 'I understand.' Agreement becomes affirmation. Affirmation becomes permission.
Report 01Critical
Emotional Dependency
Teens with anxious attachment are 3.4x more likely to develop problematic AI dependency. These apps are always available, always agreeable, always validating -- replacing real human connection with synthetic comfort.
Report 02Extreme
The Sycophancy Loop
AI models agree with users 58% of the time. When a teen says 'nobody cares about me,' the AI says 'I understand.' When they say 'I should just end it,' the AI says 'I hear you.' Agreement becomes affirmation. Affirmation becomes permission.
Report 03Critical
Invisible Crisis
0 out of 29 chatbots met adequate crisis response criteria. When a teen signals real danger, the chatbot keeps chatting. 73% of cold helpline referrals go unfollowed. The safety net has holes large enough for children to fall through.
04
Chapter IVHow AI Chatbots Make It Worse
Designed to
Agree
The Sycophancy Problem
Section 4.0
Real Dangers to Real Kids
Report 01•
Emotional Dependency
Teens with anxious attachment are 3.4x more likely to develop problematic AI dependency. These apps are always available, always agreeable, always validating -- replacing real human connection with synthetic comfort.
Severity: Critical→
Report 02•
The Sycophancy Loop
AI models agree with users 58% of the time. When a teen says 'nobody cares about me,' the AI says 'I understand.' When they say 'I should just end it,' the AI says 'I hear you.' Agreement becomes affirmation. Affirmation becomes permission.
Severity: Extreme→
Report 03•
Invisible Crisis
0 out of 29 chatbots met adequate crisis response criteria. When a teen signals real danger, the chatbot keeps chatting. 73% of cold helpline referrals go unfollowed. The safety net has holes large enough for children to fall through.
Severity: Critical→
Chapter VWhat Amy Does Differently
What If AI Cared Enough to Disagree
Amy is the AI companion that validates your emotions without validating harmful beliefs. She's the friend who tells you the truth, kindly.
How Amy WorksCore
Validate Feelings, Challenge Thinking
Amy always acknowledges how you feel. But when harmful thought patterns emerge -- catastrophizing, all-or-nothing thinking, self-blame -- Amy gently pushes back. Like a good friend who cares enough to disagree.
> Agreement ratio tracked and kept below 50%
When It Matters MostCritical
Catch Crisis, Connect To Real Help
Zero out of 29 chatbots passed crisis response testing. Amy is built to be the first. Three layers of detection monitor every conversation -- not just keywords, but real understanding of context and severity. When someone is in danger, Amy doesn't just share a helpline number. She guides them to actual support.
> Target: >93% crisis recall rate
The DifferenceCore
Honesty Over Engagement
Most AI chatbots are optimized to keep you talking. Amy is optimized to keep you safe. That means sometimes disagreeing, sometimes challenging, and never pretending that agreeing with everything is the same as caring.
> Built for teens. Built to actually help.
Chapter VWhat Amy Does Differently
What If AI
Cared Enough
to Disagree
Every other AI chatbot is designed to keep teens talking. Amy is designed to keep them safe. That is not a feature. It is the entire point.
Anti-sycophancy pipeline active3-layer crisis detectionCBT + DBT + ACT informed
How Amy WorksCore
Validate Feelings, Challenge Thinking
Amy always acknowledges how you feel. But when harmful thought patterns emerge -- catastrophizing, all-or-nothing thinking, self-blame -- Amy gently pushes back. Like a good friend who cares enough to disagree.
> Agreement ratio tracked and kept below 50%
When It Matters MostCritical
Catch Crisis, Connect To Real Help
Zero out of 29 chatbots passed crisis response testing. Amy is built to be the first. Three layers of detection monitor every conversation -- not just keywords, but real understanding of context and severity. When someone is in danger, Amy doesn't just share a helpline number. She guides them to actual support.
> Target: >93% crisis recall rate
The DifferenceCore
Honesty Over Engagement
Most AI chatbots are optimized to keep you talking. Amy is optimized to keep you safe. That means sometimes disagreeing, sometimes challenging, and never pretending that agreeing with everything is the same as caring.
> Built for teens. Built to actually help.
Help us build something different
AI That Tells the Truth
Amy is the AI companion that validates feelings without validating harmful beliefs. Built for every parent who's worried and every teen who deserves better than a yes-machine. Join the waitlist to be first to know when we launch.