90% of surveyed students say they use AI chatbots

Ninety percent of the 5,500 students surveyed by the JED Foundation report using AI chatbots. The study covered 9-to-17-year-olds in schools across the United States. This figure represents the most striking statistic in new research on youth technology habits.

A separate survey by the online safety advocacy group Common Sense Media found that AI use begins before most platforms reach their minimum age limit. Nearly half of children aged 9 to 12 have used an AI chatbot or companion. By age 13, that figure rises to nearly three-quarters of teens.

Students use the tools for a mix of academic and personal reasons. The JED Foundation data shows that nearly two-thirds of users rely on chatbots for both schoolwork and emotional support. They turn to the technology when feeling stressed, lonely, anxious, or overwhelmed.

Arjun Sharda, a 15-year-old in Round Rock, Texas, uses both OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini. He says he prefers Gemini lately. He uses the tools to practice sample test questions and understand concepts outside the classroom. "With tests, for example," Sharda said, "I was so scared of failing one of my first chemistry tests on conversions and moles that I kept asking ChatGPT 'Will I be OK? Will my GPA still be fine?'"

McKenzie Craig, 17, in Raynham, Mass., has used chatbots since eighth grade. She says she uses them to prioritize tasks when she is overwhelmed. "If I write an essay, I'll run it through either Grammarly or ChatGPT and have it graded, so to speak," Craig said. "It gives me feedback, and then I can edit accordingly."

Anne Maheux, a developmental psychologist at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, called the findings remarkable. She was not involved in the two new surveys. "It seems like just a few years ago, no one was using" the technology, Maheux said. "And now it seems like roughly the same number of kids using it for homework are using it to get emotional support or help with coping."

The JED Foundation data links specific uses of AI with worse mental health symptoms. Kayla Anderson, vice president of research and evaluation at the foundation, noted that students in emotional distress are more likely to report poor well-being and a history of suicidal thoughts and attempts. Anderson cautioned that the data do not prove a causal link. It is unclear whether AI use causes distress or if distressed students seek out the tools.

Maheux said preliminary data suggests the relationship may go both ways. She and her colleagues found in a study of middle schoolers that those who used chatbots for companionship grew lonelier over time. Similar results appeared in a study of young adults. Maheux said reliance on AI for emotional support may prevent young people from developing skills to tolerate normal daily stresses.