Chatbot Companionship: A Mixed-Methods Study of Companion Chatbot Usage Patterns and Their Relationship to Loneliness in Active Users

“These findings have significant implications for responsible AI development, suggesting that one-size-fits-all approaches to AI companionship may be ethically problematic. Our work contributes to the ongoing dialogue about the role of AI in social and emotional support, offering insights for developing more targeted and ethical approaches to AI companionship that complement rather than replace human connections.”Quoted verbatim from the abstract.