00:00If an AI always listens, never rejects you, and never argues, is that still a relationship?
00:07For many teen boys, it already is.
00:1020% of 12 to 16-year-old boys in the UK know someone their age who's dating an AI
00:17chatbot,
00:18and more than half say those relationships are easier than human ones because they can control the conversation.
00:25And that tracks.
00:26Chatbots validate your feelings.
00:28They respond instantly.
00:31They never disagree.
00:32The perfect girlfriend online looks and behaves exactly how you want her to.
00:38There's no awkward silence or rejection.
00:41But here's the catch.
00:43While digital companionship feels good short-term, experts warn that heavy reliance could deepen loneliness
00:50and weaken real-world social skills over time.
00:53And AI companion apps are addictive by design.
00:56If AI feels safer than people, what are teens really responding to?
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