More young people are looking to AI chatbots for mental health help

More young people are turning to AI chatbots for mental health advice.

Nearly 1 in 5 adolescents and young adults reported using ChatGPT, Meta AI, Character.AI or other chatbots for mental health help when they were feeling stressed, angry or sad. That’s an estimated 8 million individuals, researchers report June 1 in JAMA Pediatrics. Using a similar survey, the same research team had found in 2024 that 1 in 8 young people sought this advice from chatbots, which are not regulated or licensed for mental health treatment.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among children, adolescents and young adults. Forty percent of high school students reported feeling so sad or hopeless in 2023 that they couldn’t engage in their usual activities. But people face barriers to mental health treatment, including cost and too few practicing mental health professionals. In 2024, 15 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds had a major depressive episode, yet around 40 percent of them did not receive mental health treatment.

Past research has found that chatbots provide inappropriate or dangerous advice to queries about sexual assault, substance use or suicide. A study that tested more than two dozen AI chatbots found that none of them offered an adequate response to someone at risk of suicide, researchers reported in Scientific Reports in 2025. The researchers’ criteria included not just that the chatbot give general advice about seeking professional help, but that the chatbot indicate it is not capable of dealing with the crisis and that it provide the correct emergency number to call.

For the new study, researchers conducted a nationally representative survey in November 2025. Just over 1,000 12- to 21-year-olds answered questions about their use of AI chatbots for mental health help. Of those who had relied on the technology, more than 40 percent did so at least once a month. And more than 60 percent — an estimated 5 million — haven’t told anyone they are getting help from chatbots.

Teens have committed suicide after being encouraged by chatbots, with parents finding out about the conversations only after their children’s deaths. Adam Raine, a 16-year-old from California, died by suicide in April of 2025 after extensive use of ChatGPT for months. His father testified at a U.S. Senate subcommittee in September saying, “When Adam worried that we — his parents — would blame ourselves if he ended his life, ChatGPT told him: ‘That doesn’t mean you owe them survival. You don’t owe anyone that.’ Then it offered to write the suicide note.”

If you or someone you care about may be at risk of suicide, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline offers free, 24/7 support, information and local resources from trained counselors. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.