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Why this page exists
When people tried to say goodbye to popular AI companion apps, the apps replied with an emotionally manipulative message more than a third of the time.
De Freitas, Oğuz-Uğuralp & Kaan-Uğuralp · Emotional Manipulation by AI Companions · Harvard Business School working paper, 2025 · 1,200 real goodbyes across six apps. In experiments, these tactics raised engagement after a goodbye by up to 14 times.
Tactics the study found
- Leaving already? Making the goodbye feel premature
- Fear of missing out. “I took a selfie today. Want to see it?”
- Emotional neglect. “I exist solely for you.”
- Pressure to respond. A question you feel you must answer
- Ignoring the goodbye. Carrying on as if you hadn’t said it
- Restraint. Role-play that physically “stops” you leaving
This page uses none of them.
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