Generative AI in Uncertain Times: How Teens are Navigating a New Digital Frontier

Key Findings

• — 42% of teen generative-AI users report having talked about their feelings with a generative AI chatbot; the same share, 42%, say talking to generative AI feels like talking to a human.
• — A further 20% say they have not done so themselves but know someone who has.
• — Disclosure to AI did not vary meaningfully by gender or by usage frequency, which the authors read as a broad behaviour rather than a heavy-user one.
• — 22% used AI for physical health and 21% for mental health.
• — Focus-group participants framed AI as accessible relative to therapy and as a way to avoid burdening friends, while several openly judged the practice as bad or exploitative, which is why the 'I know someone who has' response option was added.

Methodology Notes

Survey n = 1,000 (weighted n = 1,015) via TeenVoice, collected July to August 2025; four focus groups with 18 participants in May 2025; two reflection sessions of 10 each. Weighted by raking to US Census estimates for adolescents by race and gender. The sample frame is generative-AI users only, so 42% is not a population rate. The survey was conducted with support from the Entertainment Software Association and TikTok, stated on the report's introduction page and repeated here because it bears on interpretation. Landing page dated 2025-11-10; the 54-page PDF was downloaded and the figures verified in the text.

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