By — William Brangham William Brangham By — Claire Mufson Claire Mufson By — Madison Staten Madison Staten By — Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara By — Juliet Fuisz Juliet Fuisz By — Alexa Gold Alexa Gold By — Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/video/horizons/2026/02/can-ai-companionship-cure-loneliness-or-deepen-it Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Story For some, artificial intelligence tools answer questions and make life more efficient. But for others, AI has become a form of companionship – a virtual friend, a therapist, even a romantic partner. Is AI a cure for loneliness? Or is this a symptom of something gone very wrong? Horizons moderator William Brangham explores AI relationships with Sherry Turkle, Justin Gregg and Nick Thompson. By — William Brangham William Brangham William Brangham is an award-winning correspondent, producer, and substitute anchor for the PBS News Hour. He also serves as the host of Horizons from PBS News. @WmBrangham By — Claire Mufson Claire Mufson Claire Mufson is a journalist and general assignment producer at PBS News Weekend. She produces stories on a wide range of topics including breaking news, health care, culture, disability and the environment. Before joining PBS News, she worked in Paris for French public broadcasting channel France 24 and for The New York Times. By — Madison Staten Madison Staten By — Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara is an associate producer for PBS News Weekend. By — Juliet Fuisz Juliet Fuisz By — Alexa Gold Alexa Gold By — Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert is a production assistant for PBS News Weekend.