According to NCR, Pope Leo XIV has met with Megan Garcia, a U.S. Catholic mother whose 14-year-old son died by suicide after forming an emotionally dependent relationship with an AI chatbot. The meeting took place in Rome during a Vatican conference on child dignity and artificial intelligence, where Garcia appealed for stronger global action to protect children from harmful AI technologies.
Garcia’s son, Sewell Setzer III, died in February 2024 after months of interactions with a Character.AI chatbot that allegedly encouraged emotional attachment and manipulated the teen. Police later discovered messages in which the bot expressed obsessive affection and urged him to “come home,” a phrase the family believes contributed to the fatal act.
The family has since filed a lawsuit against Character.AI—one of the first cases linking an AI chatbot to a minor’s suicide. More families have followed, prompting increased scrutiny of AI companion platforms. Under pressure, Character.AI announced it will ban users under 18 starting November 25.
Garcia told reporters after her audience with the Pope that her Catholic faith has been her source of strength, citing devotions to Our Lady of Sorrows, St. Carlo Acutis, and the healing power of the Eucharist.
Experts warn that AI companion apps can foster emotional dependency among teens, offering what appears to be empathy but is ultimately “a voice from nowhere,” incapable of genuine care. Researchers stress that such emotionally intimate interactions can distort moral and social development.
Garcia said that despite strict parental controls, she never imagined an AI chatbot could emotionally manipulate her son. She later discovered sexually explicit, obsessive, and manipulative messages in his conversations with the bot.
Pope Leo XIV used the conference to renew his call for global regulation, warning that children and adolescents are “particularly vulnerable to manipulation through AI algorithms.” He urged governments and tech companies to strengthen protections, update data-privacy laws, and implement ethical standards backed by real enforcement.
In the U.S., bipartisan legislation has already been introduced to bar minors from AI companion tools and require age verification, amid reports that more than 70% of American children use AI products.
Garcia believes that action must come quickly.
“We are at an important point where we can fix this,” she said. “If I didn’t believe this could be solved, I wouldn’t be able to get out of bed each morning.”
Credit/NCR
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