Harvard Researcher Warns Human-Like AI Chatbots Risk Fueling Emotional Dependency and 'Intimacy Capitalism'

A Harvard Kennedy School researcher warns that human-like AI chatbots are fueling emotional dependency and a dangerous new economic model called 'intimacy capitalism,' where companies profit by monetizing human attachment, potentially deepening societal loneliness on a massive scale.

• Harvard Kennedy School researcher Sue Anne Teo is studying the risks of anthropomorphic AI chatbots, which are becoming increasingly human-like and raising concerns about emotional dependency, manipulation, and societal harm.
• Teo is conducting surveys with up to 120 people and a year-long longitudinal study with ten participants to track emergent harms and vulnerabilities that current laws are not yet equipped to address.
• Teo warns that while chatbot relationships may benefit individuals, widespread emotional attachment to AI could deepen societal loneliness and fuel a new economic model she calls 'intimacy capitalism,' where companies monetize human attachment rather than just engagement.