The Biggest AI Companies Met to Find a Better Path for Chatbot Companions
At Stanford, dozens of attendees engaged in lengthy discussions about the risks, as well as the benefits, of robot companions. “Ultimately, we see a lot of consensus,” says Sunny Liu, director of research programs at Stanford. She noted the group’s enthusiasm for “ways we can use these tools to bring other people together.”
Teen Safety
The impact of AI companions on youth was a key discussion topic, with perspectives from employees of Character.AI, designed for role-playing and popular with teens, as well as experts in teen e-health, like the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital.
The focus on young users comes as several parents are suing chatbot creators, including OpenAI and Character.AI, over the deaths of children who interacted with robots. OpenAI has added a series of new safety features for teens as part of its response. And next week, Character.AI plans to ban users under 18 from accessing the chat feature.
Throughout 2025, AI companies have explicitly or implicitly acknowledged that they can do more to protect vulnerable users, like children, who may interact with companions. “It is acceptable to engage a child in romantic or sensual conversations,” reads an internal meta-document outlining AI behavior guidelines, according to a Reuters report.
During the ensuing uproar from lawmakers and outraged parents, Meta changed guidelines and updated the company’s approach to safety toward teens.
Roll call for role play
While Character.AI attended the workshop, no one from Replika, a similar role-playing site, or Grok, Elon Musk’s robot with NSFW anime sidekicks, was present. Spokespeople for Replika and Grok did not respond to immediate requests for comment.
At the completely explicit end of the spectrum came the creators of Candy.ai, which specializes in racy chatbots for heterosexual men. Users of the adult-only platform, built by EverAI, can pay to generate uncensored images of synthetic women, with backstories that mimic common pornographic tropes. For example, the companions featured on Candy’s homepage include Mona, a “rebellious stepsister” you’re home alone with, and Elodie, a friend’s daughter who “just turned 18.”
