Young Canadians Call for AI Chatbots to Be Less Addictive

By Tahani Elghazaly
Published April 30, 2026

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A new youth led report in Canada is calling for stronger rules on AI chatbots, warning that some design features may encourage excessive use, emotional reliance, and unhealthy patterns of interaction among young people.

The report is part of a youth consultation process that brought together 100 Canadians between the ages of 17 and 23 to discuss how artificial intelligence is affecting their daily lives, education, privacy, and mental well being.

Participants urged governments to require AI companies to take greater responsibility for the way chatbots are designed. Their recommendations include measures to reduce addictive design, introduce stronger content filters, allow users to delete cached or remembered data, and give people clearer control over how responsive or conversational a chatbot can be.

The report’s importance lies in the fact that it treats AI chatbots not only as technical tools, but as digital spaces where young people increasingly seek answers, support, conversation, and quick reassurance. Participants warned that this relationship can become risky when users begin to feel that a chatbot always understands them or constantly validates their emotions and beliefs without balance.

The report also raised concerns that overreliance on chatbots could weaken critical thinking, increase social isolation, and expose users to harmful or misleading content. At the same time, participants did not call for a rejection of AI. Instead, they asked for clearer rules that make the technology safer, more transparent, and easier to control.

Other recommendations include requiring social media platforms and search engines to offer simple ways for users to opt out of built in AI tools. The report also calls for a new government body that could evaluate AI systems, audit algorithms, and enforce safety standards.

The issue is especially important for families and schools because AI chatbots are no longer distant or experimental tools. For many teenagers and young adults, they are already part of studying, searching, emotional expression, and everyday advice seeking. The report opens a larger question: how can society benefit from AI without allowing it to become a digital relationship that is difficult to step away from?

As Canada continues to examine privacy, online harms, and artificial intelligence regulation, young people’s voices may become an important part of shaping the country’s next phase of digital policy.