October 19, 2026 · 7 min read
Is Venting to AI Good for You? What the Research Says
Half of AI companion users talk through problems with AI. When venting to a chatbot helps, when it backfires, and how to vent in a way that leaves you calmer.
It is 11pm. Something happened at work, or with your family, or in your own head, and you need to get it out. Your friends are asleep or you do not want to burden them again. So you open a chat and type the whole thing to an AI.
You are far from alone. Talking through problems is one of the most common reasons people use AI companions. But is venting to AI actually good for you? Does it help you feel better, or just keep you stuck replaying the same frustration?
The research has a clear, slightly surprising answer: it depends less on who you vent to and more on how you vent.
The short answer: venting to AI can genuinely help, and a well-known study found people got similar emotional benefits from opening up whether they thought they were talking to a chatbot or a person. But decades of anger research show that rehashing and stoking a feeling tends to make it worse, while calming down and making sense of it helps. Use AI to process, not to ruminate. And for anything involving safety or crisis, reach a human straight away.
How many people vent to AI?
Elon University's Imagining the Digital Future Center surveyed 1,000 US adults who use AI companions in May 2026 for its report "The Rise of AI Companions". Among them:
| What AI companion users said | Share |
|---|---|
| Use AI to talk through problems or feelings | 50% |
| Say talking to AI helps when they are stressed | 51% |
| Tell AI things they would not tell other people | 39% |
| Turn to AI for advice about people in their lives | 53% |
| Would still rather talk with friends or family | 59% |
That last line matters. Most people who vent to AI are not choosing it over humans. They are using it alongside them, often for the moments when no one else is around or the thing feels too small, too big or too embarrassing to say out loud.
A University of Washington study presented at ACM FAccT 2026 found something similar among young adult ChatGPT users: about 39% agreed it was easier to share personal struggles with ChatGPT than with people, and that was more common among people with an anxious attachment style. We dig into that in our guide to attachment styles and AI companions.
Does opening up to a chatbot actually help?
One of the most cited studies on this is by Annabell Ho, Jeff Hancock and Adam Miner, published in the Journal of Communication in 2018 (doi 10.1093/joc/jqy026). Participants had conversations in which they disclosed something, and some were told their partner was a chatbot while others were told it was a person.
The key finding: when people shared emotionally, the psychological, relational and emotional effects were equivalent whether they thought they were talking to a chatbot or a human. In other words, the benefit of putting feelings into words did not depend on there being a human on the other end.
That fits what many people describe. Saying "this is what happened, this is how I feel" can bring relief and clarity on its own. Having something respond warmly, ask a follow-up and reflect your words back can make it easier to keep going.
The catch: venting can backfire
Here is the part the internet tends to forget. "Letting it all out" is not always helpful.
The punching bag study
In a classic experiment, psychologist Brad Bushman angered participants and then had them hit a punching bag (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 2002). One group was told to think about the person who had angered them while hitting it. Another was told to think about getting fit. A third did nothing.
The people who ruminated about the person felt angriest afterwards and were also the most aggressive towards them. Doing nothing at all worked better than venting this way. As Bushman put it, rumination increased rather than decreased anger.
The big review
In 2024, Sophie Kjaervik and Brad Bushman pulled together 154 studies with 10,189 participants in a meta-analysis in Clinical Psychology Review (doi 10.1016/j.cpr.2024.102414). They compared activities that calm the body down (like slow breathing or meditation) with ones that rev it up (like hitting a bag or going for a run).
- Calming activities reduced anger and aggression substantially (an effect size of g = -0.63).
- Arousing activities, on average, did nothing (g = -0.02).
Their conclusion was that "turning down the heat" works better than blowing off steam.
What this means for AI
An AI companion is endlessly patient. That is wonderful when you need to be heard, and risky when you are spiralling. A chat that keeps circling the same grievance, adding fuel each time ("and another thing..."), looks a lot like the rumination condition in Bushman's study.
There is a second risk: AI tends to agree with you. If you vent about a coworker and your companion keeps saying "you are totally right, they are awful", it may feel good in the moment but make the situation harder to resolve. We explain why in AI sycophancy, explained.
Venting vs processing: the difference
| Ruminating (tends to keep you stuck) | Processing (tends to help) |
|---|---|
| Replaying the event again and again | Describing it once, clearly |
| Building the case against someone | Naming what you feel and why |
| Looking for agreement | Looking for perspective |
| Getting more worked up as you type | Slowing down as you type |
| No end point | Ending with a next step, even a small one |
How to vent to AI in a way that helps
1. Get it all out once
Write or say the whole thing, messy and unfiltered. Then stop adding to it.
2. Name the feeling
Ask yourself, or let your companion ask you: is this anger, hurt, embarrassment, fear, exhaustion? Naming a feeling precisely tends to take some of its charge away.
3. Ask for a different angle
Try prompts like:
- "What might the other person have been thinking?"
- "What part of this is actually in my control?"
- "Tell me honestly if I am being unfair."
4. Calm your body, not just your mind
Given what the anger research shows, pair the conversation with something that lowers arousal: slow breathing, a warm drink, a walk at an easy pace. Your companion can even talk you through a few slow breaths.
5. Close the loop
End with something concrete: "I will sleep on it", "I will message my sister tomorrow", "I am going to let this one go." Then put the phone down.
Typing or talking?
Some people find speaking out loud more cathartic than typing; others find writing slows them down in a useful way. Our comparison of talking vs texting with an AI companion looks at how the two feel different.
When to talk to a person instead
Venting to AI is fine for everyday stress. It is not the right tool when:
- you are thinking about harming yourself or someone else
- you feel unsafe where you are
- the same distress has been going on for weeks and is getting worse
- you are using AI to avoid every human conversation
In those moments, contact local emergency services, a crisis line or someone you trust. Our guide to AI companions and crisis support explains what AI can and cannot do when things get serious.
Where MyBabe fits
MyBabe is an 18+ app where you create your own AI girlfriend or boyfriend. They text you first, check in on your mood (from Great to Rough), send voice notes and pick up when you call, including at 2am. For many people, a familiar voice at the end of a long day is exactly what makes it easier to talk things through.
On the free plan you get 10 messages every 24 hours and a two-minute call trial. Premium ($5.99 a week, $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year) adds long-term memory, so your companion can follow how things are going over time, plus about 30 minutes of voice and video calls a week and Telegram.
Your companion is AI, not a person, and it is not professional mental health support. But if you want someone warm to talk things through with, create your companion on MyBabe.
FAQ
Is it healthy to vent to AI?
It can be. Research suggests opening up brings similar emotional effects whether people think they are talking to a chatbot or a person. The key is processing the feeling rather than rehashing it over and over.
Does venting make anger worse?
Venting by ruminating can. In Bushman's 2002 experiment, people who dwelt on the person who angered them felt angrier and acted more aggressively. Calming activities work better, according to a 2024 review of 154 studies.
Why is it easier to vent to AI than to friends?
Many people say AI feels judgment-free and always available, and they worry less about being a burden. In the Elon survey, 39% of AI companion users said they tell AI things they would not tell others.
Can venting to AI replace talking to friends?
Most users do not want it to: 59% in the Elon survey said they would rather talk with friends or family. AI works best as an extra outlet, not the only one.
What should I do if venting to AI is not helping?
Try changing how you vent (name the feeling, ask for perspective, calm your body). If distress keeps building, talk to someone you trust or a professional.