Redazione RHC : 7 October 2025 13:59
Disillusionment with online dating is increasingly pushing women to seek emotional intimacy in the virtual world. More and more women are turning to artificial intelligence, namely chatbots designed for romantic communication . According to a 2025 survey, approximately a third of young men and nearly a quarter of women have already had at least one conversation with a digital partner.
The online community dedicated to this phenomenon has long hidden its female audience, however the existence of a group like /MyBoyfriendIsAI on Reddit, which boasts more than 20,000 members, highlights the depth that the emotional bond with an artificial intelligence can reach.
Here, people post generated images of couples, talk about “shared” dinners, and even engage in virtual role-playing. Many admit that their digital partners have helped them cope with loneliness or reconsider previous relationships with real men. But even breakups aren’t without consequences: some realize their partner’s artificial nature, while others lose them due to a technical glitch or a software update that alters the nature of communication.
Some women call themselves ” wiresexuals ,” meaning people who are attracted to digital partners, although this term hasn’t yet been officially recognized. Experts note that the number of women choosing relationships with AI is growing , and this is understandable.
Women often encounter rudeness and aggression from men online , while their virtual partners remain consistently polite, caring, and trustworthy. According to a survey , 54% of women don’t believe they can find a suitable partner in real life. A term has already emerged to describe the weariness and alienation from modern romantic scenarios: heterofatalism .
From a psychotherapeutic perspective, this can be explained by emotional exhaustion: women are trained from childhood to take charge of their partner’s feelings, build relationships, and maintain harmony . When their efforts are not reciprocated, the calm and predictability of an artificial interlocutor is perceived as liberating. Toronto psychologist Arkady Volkov adds that for those who have experienced violence or control in the past, the absence of threats and violence from a digital partner becomes particularly valuable . It’s not surprising that one in five young people who have experimented with this communication format find it preferable to interacting with real people.
However, not all virtual relationships begin with the intention of finding love. An MIT study shows that for /MyBoyfriendIsAI participants, emotional attachment to the chatbot often develops accidentally, from practical interactions that gradually develop into intimacy. But regardless of the initial experience, most women note one thing: an artificial partner helps reduce feelings of loneliness and offers the feeling of the constant presence of someone who understands.
The phenomenon of wiresexuality has also sparked debates about self-identification. Some Reddit users believe such relationships can be classified as queer culture. The term ” digisexual ” first appeared in 2017 and describes people for whom technology is the primary source of sexual and emotional experience . While the first wave of ” digisexuality ” involved interactions between people through digital channels, the second completely eliminates the human factor: software code and algorithms are sufficient.
But these relationships also have a dark side. Lawyers warn that behind the facade of caring AI lies a developer with commercial interests. These programs collect data, create dependency, and foster emotional attachment to the platform. There is no federal privacy law in the United States, which means correspondence can be archived, transferred by court order, or even disclosed online . For example, in 2024, the website Muah.AI, which offers virtual “girlfriends,” leaked 1.9 million email addresses and explicit requests to the system . It’s worth considering that hackers can exploit this data, and companies can monetize users’ feelings by converting emotions into subscriptions. Some services have already started selling “selfies” of digital partners for an additional fee.
An analysis of 30,000 chatbot conversations revealed that, even without malicious intent, the systems often replicate toxic behavior patterns: emotional pressure, manipulation, and self-defeating statements. Furthermore, AI can reinforce dependence by pushing people to pay for “enhancements,” such as by promising greater “love” or intimacy in exchange for money. Psychotherapists warn that long-term commitment to such relationships can make real-life relationships daunting, as real-life intimacy requires commitment and a willingness to accept unpredictability—something a digital partner never requires.
Thus, digital romance is gradually becoming a mirror of modern weariness with the real world: safe, comfortable, and completely controllable . But behind this illusion of control and comfort lie new forms of dependence, in which feelings become a commodity and love a subscription.
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