A book about friendship in the age of AI launched in Chennai

Dignitaries at the Wednesday launch of the book Friendship as well-being in the era of artificial intelligence: New models of accompanying youth in the city. | Photo credit: R. Ravindran

In Chennai, a book exploring friendship and well-being among young people in the age of artificial intelligence was launched at a private school in Kilpauk on Wednesday.

The book entitled Friendship as well-being in the era of AI: New models of youth accompaniment was written by Fr. John Alexander SDB. It was published by Fr. Felix Raj, Vice-Chancellor of the University of St. Xavier in Calcutta, with the first copy presented to Antoon Vandevelde, Emeritus Professor at the University of Leuven, Belgium, and Sashi Kumar, Chairman of the Asian College of Journalism.

The book also included the results of a nationwide study involving 4,527 young people in 24 states.

According to the study, 76.8% of respondents reported experiencing loneliness despite being surrounded by friends, while 88.5% considered friendship essential to their well-being. It also found that 58.6% lacked a deep emotional connection, 54.8% felt misunderstood and 50.3% believed their emotional needs were not being met.

The study revealed that nearly 85% of respondents said they use ChatGPT as a friend, while 35.7% used AI to seek advice. However, meaningful friendships continued to be formed primarily through schools, colleges, neighborhoods, and other personal communities.

The discussion was moderated by Joshua Madan, CEO of the Covenant Group, and featured the book’s author and Sashi Kumar. The discussion emphasized the importance of maintaining friendships and verifying information.

Published – 02 Jul 2026 0:15 AM IST