A recent National Catholic Register story on Megan Garcia’s meeting with Pope Leo XIV spotlighted key insights from the HumanConnections.AI Salon, where experts warned about the risks AI chatbots pose to children and teens. Replika founder Eugenia Kuyda stressed that her platform bars users under 18, saying we “can’t be experimenting and building it with kids.” MIT’s Sherry Turkle cautioned that young people seeking empathy from chatbots end up with “a voice from nowhere,” rather than the human connections they need to develop emotionally and relationally.

The article also featured perspectives from Ron Ivey, founder and CEO of Noēsis. He noted that while adults typically use chatbots for tasks, young people turn to them for deeper questions about purpose, relationships, and identity, creating unique developmental risks. “These machines don’t care about the child,” Ivey said, raising concerns about how hours of daily interaction with AI companions may shape a child’s moral, emotional, and social growth.

Builder’s AI Conference at the Pope’s University, the Pontifical Gregorian University

Founder, Ron Ivey, recently spoke on AI and human flourishing at the Global Solutions Initiative Summit, an advisory body to the G20. He presented a policy brief …

On June 19-20, our Founder, Ron Ivey attended the Second Annual Rome Conference on AI, Ethics, and the Future of Corporate Governance at the Aposolitic Palace …

Our HumanConnections.AI program recently published a white paper called: Social AI and Human Connections: Benefits, Risks and Social Impact. Drawing on a review of recent literature, expert interviews …

Noēsis Collaborative is a new nonprofit organization building a collaborative ecosystem of leaders who research, build, and govern technologies that advance human flourishing.

In this ‪@humanconnectionsai‬ interview, De Kai provides his perspective on AI and human relationships and the perspectives on the future of this new frontier …

Humanconnections.AI interview with Andrew McStay, Author of Emotional AI and Automated Empathy, Founder of the Emotional AI Lab and Professor of Technology and Society, Bangor University at the HumanConnections.AI Salon …

In Synthetic Intimacy: Is AI Solving the Loneliness Epidemic or Making It Worse?, Ron Ivey explores the rapid rise of AI “companions” and asks whether venture-backed startups are the right stewards of a public health crisis like loneliness. Companies such as FantasyGF, Character.AI, and Meeno are tapping into what investors call the “loneliness market,” with users spending hours each day forming intimate bonds with AI partners. But as Ron argues, deploying synthetic intimacy to isolated young people may deepen emotional fragility, distort reality, and undermine the social trust that democracy depends on.

Drawing on research from the Harvard Human Flourishing Program, he warns that AI mentors risk replacing the real human relationships essential for mental, emotional, and moral development. Ron also highlights the deeper issue: our economic system rewards growth above all else, pushing founders toward products that scale quickly even when they may harm community life. He argues for new flourishing-centered metrics for national policy and corporate performance, and calls for leadership models that prioritize human wellbeing over frictionless growth.

The essay ends on a hopeful note: technology can support flourishing when grounded in real, in-person connection. A café conversation with Meeno’s founder reminded Ron that genuine human encounters are where meaningful change begins.