Effects of AI companions’ sycophancy and emotional mimicry on consumers’ continuance intention and social wellbeing

Consumers increasingly rely on social or conversational AI for companionship. While AI companions tend to be excessively agreeable with users (AI sycophancy) to boost engagement and usage, sycophantic AI may negatively impact consumers’ wellbeing. This study employed a 2 × 2 online experiment with 636 Chinese respondents to investigate the moderating effects of emotional mimicry (nonverbal expression) on the impact of AI sycophancy (verbal content) on users’ continuance intention and social wellbeing. Results indicated that AI companions with low sycophancy provide better social support to users, subsequently enhancing continuance intention and wellbeing. AI companions that mimic users’ emotions reduce the negative impact of AI sycophancy on emotional support but not informational support. Theoretical and practical implications of ethical and responsible AI companion design are discussed.