AI chatbots are now being counted as confidants, friends, and even romantic partners, but despite their increasingly better attempts at mimicking and mirroring human emotion, new research suggests that many people are still uncomfortable with the idea of calling AI a friend.

A survey of UK adults by YouGov found that only around 14% of the general population are familiar with the idea of AI companions.

That figure rises sharply among the younger generation, those aged 18 to 34 years old, where more than a quarter (26%) have some experience of AI companions, compared to 12% of those over 35, and just 8% of those aged 55 and over.

Although they might be more familiar with the concept, however, young people are actually less likely to trust AI as a companion than other generations, with 79% saying they would be uncomfortable forming a long-term connection with an AI model.

That’s fairly close to the feelings of the public at large, with three-quarters (75%) of consumers agreeing they wouldn’t want to maintain a relationship with an AI companion, despite the surge in models designed with this in mind, like Replika or Character.AI.

However, among those who were willing to consider using an AI companion, their interest is functional, rather than personal.

Productivity tasks and assistance were cited as the main benefit of a long-term AI connection (52%), followed by learning and skill development (50%), with YouGov finding particular appeal for the latter across all age groups.

Using AI companions for entertainment or fun, meanwhile, was less popular (37%), and again, younger adults were the most sceptical (30%) compared to middle-aged (42%) and older (38%) generations.

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The data suggests that while much has been made of the eye-catching headlines around the risks of AI companions, as well as the few cases of actual harm being linked to them, most people still see the technology as a tool, not a social substitute.

In fact, YouGov found that only 10% thought of using AI for casual conversions, while emotional support was cited by just 9% of respondents, and just 2% said they would consider AI as a romantic partner.

Instead, more than half of those polled (52%) said that they would be most interested in an AI companion for completing daily tasks, followed by mentoring and coaching (23%) and acting as a creative partner (17%).

The data points to a public that’s open to the idea of long-term AI interaction, but largely on pragmatic terms. Emotional companionship may be part of the conversation in future, but it’s not the dominant driver, at least not yet.