Boys and Bots

A graphic of 10 smartphones with 8.5 of them coloured in with a caption '85% of boys have had a conversation with AI chatbots'.

Through our Voice of the Boys research we discovered boys are using AI differently to adults.

For most adults and parents, AI is a tool or a shortcut. Increasingly for boys, however, AI is a source of emotional support and relationships (friends, girlfriends, therapists) and a way to view and/or create nudification material.

This sparked our latest research where we asked over 1,000 boys aged 12-16, in 11 regions across the UK, what their AI chatbot use is like.

Two pictograms. The first shows 10 boys with 4 of them coloured in, captioned '43% use chatbots because the conversation feels easy and they can ask questions without embarrassment'. Below is another one of 4 boys with 1 coloured in, captioned 26% of boys find the attention and connection they get from AI chatbots better than their real life'.

Boys and bots initial findings

The findings paint a picture of a generation rapidly integrating AI into their emotional and social lives while already grappling with its unintended consequences.

Key stats:

  • 85% of boys aged 12-16 have used, or know someone who has used, an AI chatbot
  • 36% of boys 12-16 say they prefer speaking to AI over friends and family at times
  • 20% of boys aged 12-16 knowing someone with an AI ‘girlfriend’ or ‘boyfriend’
  • Almost 1 in 10 boys aged 12-16 have created sexual images of friends using AI
  • 14% of boys have seen nudification app images
  • 67% of boys report seeing the images shared

Download Boys and Bots research report

Download Parenting in the Age of AI: The Guide

Download The Voice of the Boys