Asma Uddin explores the paradoxical impact of AI companion technology, noting that ElliQ robots have reduced loneliness in seniors by as much as 95% while chatbots like Character.AI have proven harmful to teenagers, including a case linked to a 14-year-old’s suicide. Uddin argues that accountability in design, specifically whether a system points users toward human connection or replaces it, should determine how companion AI is regulated, a principle she notes Pope Leo XIV endorsed in his encyclical on artificial intelligence. She proposes legislation requiring companionship technology to demonstrably reduce loneliness rather than simply maximize engagement.
