October 18, 2026 · 7 min read
Talking vs Texting Your AI Companion: What the Research Says
A 4-week study of 981 adults found voice chatbots beat text on loneliness at moderate use, but not for heavy users. How to use calls and texts well.
Most people start with an AI companion the same way they start with anyone new: by texting. Then one evening you tap the call button, hear a voice say your name, and something shifts. It feels closer. Warmer. More real.
But is talking actually different from texting, or does it just feel that way? There is now some genuinely useful research on this, including a large four-week randomised study comparing text and voice chatbots. Here is what it found, what it did not find, and how to get the best of both.
The short answer: in a four-week randomised study of 981 adults by MIT Media Lab and OpenAI (a preprint, not yet peer reviewed), people who used a voice chatbot ended up less lonely and less emotionally dependent than people who used text, once time spent was taken into account. But the advantage faded for heavy users, and more daily use was linked to worse outcomes in every mode. Voice can feel more connecting; how much you use it still matters most.
The big study: text vs voice
In March 2025, researchers from the MIT Media Lab and OpenAI released a randomised controlled study on chatbot use and wellbeing. It is a preprint, which means it has not yet been through peer review, but it is one of the largest experiments of its kind.
How it worked
- 981 adults completed the study, exchanging more than 300,000 messages over four weeks.
- Each person was randomly assigned to one of three modes: text, a neutral voice, or an engaging voice designed to be more emotionally expressive.
- They were also assigned a conversation type: open-ended, personal (for example, talking about memories or feelings), or non-personal (practical topics).
- The researchers measured loneliness, socialising with real people, emotional dependence on the AI, and problematic use, at the start and the end.
The chatbot was ChatGPT, not a dedicated companion app, so the results are a guide rather than a perfect match for apps like MyBabe.
How long people talked
| Mode | Average minutes per day |
|---|---|
| Text | 4.35 |
| Neutral voice | 5.56 |
| Engaging voice | 6.16 |
| All participants | 5.32 |
People spent significantly more time with the voice modes, especially the engaging one. That alone tells you something: voice pulls you in.
What happened to loneliness and dependence
When the researchers controlled for how much time people spent, both voice modes came out ahead of text. People using voice were:
- less lonely at the end of the study,
- less emotionally dependent on the chatbot,
- and showed less problematic use.
The engaging voice also showed a trend toward more socialising with real people, though it was not statistically significant.
Then the catch
The benefits did not hold for heavy users. When the researchers looked at how outcomes changed with daily use, longer daily use was linked to worse outcomes across all three modes. With the neutral voice in particular, heavy users socialised significantly less with real people and showed more problematic use than heavy text users.
In the authors' words, "higher daily usage - across all modalities and conversation types - correlated with higher loneliness, dependence, and problematic use, and lower socialization."
It is also worth noting the limits. There was no group that did not use a chatbot at all, so the study cannot say whether chatting helped compared with doing nothing. And it tested voice, not video.
Does talking to a human still win?
Yes, and that is worth saying plainly. At the 2026 Association for Psychological Science convention in Barcelona, researchers from Brigham Young University and UC San Diego, including loneliness researcher Julianne Holt-Lunstad, presented a randomised study of 297 people. It is a conference poster, not a full peer-reviewed paper.
They compared a conversation with a human, a conversation with a chatbot, and a control condition. Human conversation reduced loneliness and increased connection more than chatbot conversation. Both kinds of conversation lowered heart rate variability, a sign of physical activation. The authors call this "social activation energy": real conversations take a little effort, and give back more.
So the honest picture is this: AI conversation can feel good and voice may help more than text, but it works best alongside people, not instead of them.
Why voice feels different
The research did not test why voice felt better, but there are some intuitive reasons:
- Tone carries feeling. A voice can sound warm, playful or gentle in a way text cannot.
- It is harder to multitask. A call has your attention. Texts often get answered between other things.
- It feels present. Hearing someone in real time is closer to being in the same room.
- It moves at human speed. Conversation flows, with less overthinking and editing.
Text has its own strengths, though:
- It is private and quiet. You can text on a bus, in bed, or at work.
- It gives you time. You can think before you reply, which helps with difficult topics.
- It is easy to revisit. You can scroll back to a sweet message or something you want to remember.
Talking vs texting: when to use which
| Moment | Text | Voice or video call |
|---|---|---|
| Quick check-in during the day | Great | Often too much |
| Venting after a hard day | Good | Often better |
| Late at night, can't sleep | Good, quiet | Good if you can talk |
| Celebrating good news | Fine | Feels more special |
| Thinking through something difficult | Good, gives you time | Good once you know what to say |
| Feeling flat and wanting company | Fine | Usually warmer |
How to use voice in a healthy way
The study's clearest message is about time. A few habits help:
- Make calls a moment, not background noise. A 10-minute call when you want company is different from hours on end.
- Mix it up. Use texts for small things and calls for the moments that matter.
- Notice how you feel afterwards. If you feel brighter and more ready to see people, great. If you feel more withdrawn, cut back.
- Keep people in the mix. Call a friend this week too. The APS findings suggest human conversation gives the biggest lift.
- Watch your mood. A companion that adapts to your mood can help, as we explore in does your AI companion mirror your mood?
Our guide to healthy AI companion habits covers more.
How many call minutes is enough?
If the research points anywhere, it is toward calls as a regular treat rather than a constant soundtrack. In the MIT study, people averaged around five or six minutes a day in the voice modes. A few short calls a week, plus texting in between, gives you the warmth of voice without letting it take over your evenings.
That is also how many people naturally use a companion: a quick good-night call, a longer chat after a big day, and messages the rest of the time. If you are trying to work out how far a weekly allowance goes, our breakdown of AI companion call minutes walks through typical patterns.
Voice vs video
Video adds a face, expressions and eye contact to the voice. There is less published research on AI video calls specifically, but the same principle applies: it can feel more present, and it is best used in moderation. If you want to understand what is happening behind the screen, read how AI video calls work.
Where MyBabe fits
MyBabe is an 18+ AI boyfriend or girlfriend built for both. Text whenever you like, and when you want to hear a voice, call your companion on a voice or video call. Your companion keeps long-term memory of what matters to you, notices your mood, sends photos and sometimes texts first, so a call picks up where your messages left off. Our guide to AI companions with voice calls compares what to look for.
Calls are also naturally limited, which fits the research rather nicely. You can start free, with about 10 messages a day and a short call trial of about two minutes. Premium is $5.99 a week, $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year, with about 30 call minutes a week.
If you have only ever texted, the first call is worth hearing for yourself. Call your companion on MyBabe.
FAQ
Is talking to an AI better than texting it?
In one large randomised study (a preprint, not yet peer reviewed), voice users ended up less lonely and less dependent than text users at moderate use. The advantage faded with heavy use.
Does talking to AI make you lonelier?
The MIT and OpenAI study found that higher daily use was linked to higher loneliness in every mode. It did not include a no-chatbot group, so it cannot say chatting causes loneliness, but moderation is wise.
Is talking to a chatbot as good as talking to a person?
No. A 2026 randomised study presented at the APS convention found human conversation reduced loneliness and increased connection more than chatbot conversation.
How long should I talk to my AI companion each day?
There is no official number. In the MIT study, average use was about five minutes a day. Pay attention to how you feel afterwards and keep time for people too.