According to a social media post by tech executive Greg Isenberg, the use of “AI girlfriends” – artificially intelligent virtual companions – appears to be a growing trend.
Isenberg recounted meeting a 24-year-old man in Miami who spends $10,000 per month interacting with AI girlfriends through platforms like Candy.ai and Kupid.ai, which allow users to customize companions.
While some find comfort in these personalized interactions, privacy experts warn that AI girlfriends harvest extremely personal user data and privacy is a major concern.
A recent survey found nearly 20% of Americans have flirted with chatbots, with motivations including curiosity and loneliness.
Isenberg predicted the concept could become a billion dollar industry, similar to existing dating apps.
“Someone will build the AI-version of Match Group and make $1B+,” he said.
However, researchers note AI girlfriends are designed more for dependency than mental well-being, and do not actually have users’ best interests in mind.
“To be perfectly blunt, AI girlfriends are not your friends,” Mozilla Researcher Misha Rykov said. “Although they are marketed as something that will enhance your mental health and well-being, they specialize in delivering dependency, loneliness, and toxicity, all while prying as much data as possible from you.”
