Do People Use AI Instead of Talking to Other People?
Some people use AI for conversation when they want immediacy, privacy, or low effort interaction. This raises a practical question about substitution: how often do people actually use AI instead of talking to other people?
Answer
In the AI Companionship & Human Connection 2025 dataset (n = 501) , 69% of respondents say AI rarely or never replaces talking to other people.
At the same time, 31% report that AI replaces talking to people at least sometimes, and 5% say this happens very often or every day.
This indicates that AI is used as a conversational substitute in some situations, but does not replace human interaction for most people.
These findings reflect self-reported responses within survey samples. They describe measured patterns and do not establish causation.
How people often describe this
- “Sometimes I talk to AI because it is easier than explaining things to someone.”
- “I use it when I do not feel like bothering anyone.”
- “It can feel like a stand-in when no one else is available.”
- “I do not think it replaces people, but sometimes it replaces the need to talk.”
Are lonelier people more likely to use AI instead of talking to other people?
Respondents reporting higher loneliness were more likely to say they sometimes use AI instead of talking to other people.
In the dataset, 24% of respondents with low loneliness reported sometimes or more often replacing human conversation with AI. This increased to 35% among those with moderate loneliness and 39% among those reporting high loneliness.
These figures describe associations within the survey sample. They do not establish causation.
Evidence sources
Related questions
Part of a wider topic
This page forms part of HCI’s work on Feeling Connected in an AI World .
View all question topics in the Questions Hub .