Survey Finds Teenagers Raising Self-Harm and Suicide With AI

A survey of Korean teenagers aged 14-18, conducted by Save the Children and disclosed by Rep. Seo Young-seok, found that emotional conversations with artificial intelligence have become common among the young. Of 229 valid respondents, 209, or 91.3 percent, said they had engaged in emotional or personal conversations with AI over the previous three months.

Among those 209 teenagers, 19, or 9.1 percent, reported discussing thoughts or concerns related to self-harm or suicide. The most common topics were academic performance, schoolwork and career concerns, cited by 71.3 percent, followed by relationships at 35.9 percent. Nearly a quarter, 24.9 percent, had discussed feelings of loneliness, anxiety or depression, and 19.6 percent said they had interacted with AI as though it were a friend or romantic partner.

The survey report cautioned against drawing causal conclusions between these interactions and mental health crises. Instead, it called for examining whether appropriate preventive measures are in place when conversations turn to self-harm or suicide.

The findings arrive amid wider concern over adolescent suicide. According to a 2025 cause-of-death report, Korea's overall suicide rate fell for the first time in three years, but the rate among teenagers was the only one to rise across all age groups, reaching a record 8.6 per 100,000 people, up from 8.0 in 2024. The government is preparing to introduce psychological autopsies for adolescent suicide deaths in 2027, including analysis of digital information, though the Korea Foundation for Suicide Prevention said it had conducted no research linking AI conversations or other digital activity to such work.

The Foundation notes that these figures point to a gap between how the young now confide in machines and the safeguards available when distress is disclosed. This development was reported by Korea Biomedical Review.