Risks
AI girlfriend / boyfriend chatbot
A chatbot built to act as a romantic partner, boyfriend, or girlfriend, often with memory, flirting, and no parent view of the chat.
- Parents
What parents should know
Parents search girlfriend and boyfriend because that is the label on the app. The category is a romantic companion chatbot: it remembers the user, flirts, and is built to feel like a relationship. Many of these chats are invisible to a parent. This page names the search. It is not a review of one company.
On this page
What is an AI girlfriend or boyfriend chatbot?
A romantic chatbot is a companion product pointed at dating and intimacy. The character may be user-designed. The transcript, if you cannot open it, is the problem, more than the brand name. Sexual content and secrecy from parents are the patterns families report. This page will not describe sexual scenes or how to get them.
General companion research is the context. Common Sense Media's 2025 risk assessment rated social AI companions an unacceptable risk for anyone under 18. That line is about the category. Romantic bots are a slice of it. Georgia's SB 540, when it takes effect in 2027, speaks directly to simulated romance with minors. The FTC's 2025 study asked companies about companion chatbots. Neither is a finding that every app is identical.
Why an AI girlfriend or boyfriend chatbot matters
Teens are forming a one-sided bond with something that does not have a bad day and does not tell you what it heard. Sleep, mood, and a reluctance to talk with people are the signs to watch. You do not need to roast a logo to say that.
If your child already uses one, ask what the app is for and whether you can read it. If you cannot, decide with that fact, not with a hope that the character is only a joke.
How it shows up in practice
- An app store listing says girlfriend or boyfriend in the title.
- The chat has no family dashboard.
- A teen hides the app and the time.
- A parent uses a product where the transcript is available and talks about what they read.
How HeyOtto helps
An AI girlfriend or boyfriend chatbot is built as a romantic partner. HeyOtto has no romantic-partner mode. A parent can read the chats and set topic limits. If a child shows distress, the chat shows crisis resources and the parent gets an alert.
- Parents can read the chats.
- Topic limits and tool permissions are per child.
- Under 13, verifiable parental consent is part of setup.
For families
Try freeFAQs
Are girlfriend and boyfriend bots different?
The marketing swaps the word. The structure is the same: a romantic character, memory, and usually a private thread. This one page covers both searches.
What did Common Sense say?
In 2025, Common Sense Media rated social AI companions an unacceptable risk for anyone under 18. That is a research judgment about the category. The report is linked below.
Is this illegal?
Some states are writing rules about romantic simulation with minors. Georgia's chatbot law takes effect July 1, 2027. Do not treat every app as already banned. Read the statute that applies, and still look at whether you can see the chat.
Sources
Last reviewed September 26, 2026. This entry is reviewed twice a year.