A growing number of teens are finding connections in code. One in five high school students said they or someone they know has had a romantic relationship with a chatbot, according to new data from the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT). Nearly half also call AI a friend or an escape, and some noted that the bots are easier to talk to than their parents.
The CDT report found that the heavy classroom use of AI is deepening the disconnection between students and teachers, with many students saying that AI makes them feel less connected in class.
The data behind the findings
Drawn from CDT’s Hand in Hand survey, the research polled 1,030 high school students, 806 teachers, and 1,018 parents nationwide during the 2024-2025 school year. Eighty-six percent of students reported they used AI in the past school year, and half said they used it for schoolwork.
It examined how the rapid spread of AI in schools is influencing students’ relationships, well-being, and daily life, revealing not just how teens use these tools, but what they risk losing along the way. The results paint a revealing picture of how deeply the technology is now woven into teens’ emotional and social lives.
From homework to heart talk
Forty-two percent of the students surveyed admitted they’ve chatted with AI as a friend or companion or used it as a way to escape real life.
The conversations aren’t always happening off school grounds, either. Nearly a third of students reported using a school-issued device or software for personal exchanges with AI, raising concerns about privacy and the blurred boundaries between learning and leisure. For many teens, those chats have become emotionally easier than human conversations, with 38% stating it’s easier to talk to AI than to their parents.
More efficient but less human
In classrooms where AI use is more common, students say the trade-off is clear: lessons may run smoothly, but they feel less personal. Fifty percent of students reported feeling less connected to their teachers when AI is used in class, and 38% revealed they’d rather turn to a chatbot than ask a teacher when they don’t understand something.
Researchers noted that the pattern underscores how easily AI tools can crowd out human interaction. “Students should know they are not actually talking to a person. They are talking to a tool,” said Elizabeth Laird, one of the report’s authors.
As classrooms grow more automated, CDT’s findings suggest something harder to measure is slipping away — the sense of connection that keeps learning human.
Untrained, unaware, and already behind
The study also revealed that the people meant to guide students through it are struggling to keep up. Only 11% of teachers said they’ve received training on how to respond if a student’s use of AI harms their well-being.
Additionally, many educators reported they’re learning the technology as they go, often with little direction on how to manage its emotional or ethical fallout.
Parents aren’t much better equipped. Nearly two-thirds admitted they have no idea how their children are using AI. That lack of awareness, researchers warn, leaves students to navigate increasingly personal relationships with algorithms on their own.
CDT President Alexandra Reeve Givens said in a press release that “students need strong relationships with their teachers,” adding that the benefits of AI “cannot distract from the core mission of schools.”
The disconnect between students and the adults guiding them may be the most pressing finding of all. Until schools and families close the knowledge gap, teens will continue to turn to AI for answers, empathy, or even romantic connections, or needs that technology can mimic but not truly meet.
The issue is gaining traction beyond education circles, with OpenAI adding new safety measures to protect young people using ChatGPT.