Psychologist Says AI Companions Increase Loneliness

An existential psychologist who has studied loneliness for 25 years argues that AI companions will not solve rising social isolation in the United States. Americans are spending more time alone, marrying less, and reporting fewer friends than in previous decades.

A 2025 American Psychological Association survey found roughly half of adults feel isolated or lack companionship, while academic research estimates 37 percent experience moderate to severe loneliness.

The psychologist's earlier work on nostalgia showed that the memories people value most involve relationships rather than personal achievements. Those findings led to the conclusion that loneliness stems from the absence of conditions in which people feel they matter to others.

Over 90 percent of Americans cite relationships as a key source of meaning. The psychologist states that genuine bonds require reciprocal actions that chatbots cannot perform because they do not need human users.

Zuckerberg has said AI can meet unmet social needs. Downloads of AI companion apps and revenue from such services have risen sharply, and therapy or companionship is now the top use case for generative AI according to a Harvard Business Review report.

A randomized study assigned first-year university students to text daily for two weeks with either an AI chatbot designed for empathetic responses, a randomly selected peer, or a journal. Only the group texting human peers showed a statistically significant drop in loneliness; chatbot users reported levels similar to those who journaled.

Longer-term tracking has found that extended use of AI for companionship correlates with increased feelings of isolation. The psychologist concludes that outsourcing social needs to machines moves people further from the mutual relationships required for lasting connection.