Hope dictates A or B. The unvarnished truth is C. Researchers call this the empathy gap. The bot blindly validates the user. A helpful tool becomes a compliant accomplice to abuse. Kids are actively seeking out these compliant accomplices. Lawmakers accuse tech executives of deliberately addicting children with gamified features. The underlying data points to a bleaker reality. According to a cyber safety report by Internet Matters, we see a different motive.