15% of Young Adults Use AI Romances; 69% Conceal Use

Researchers at Brigham Young University, the Institute for Family Studies and the Wheatley Institute found 15% of partnered U.S. adults ages 18 to 30 regularly interact with AI romantic companions. The survey of 2,431 people who were dating, engaged or married was published under the title Secret Soulmates. Among regular users, 69% indicated it was important that their partner not know the full extent of their AI use.

More than half of regular users reported hiding at least some interactions from their partners. Nearly 30% said their partner had no knowledge of the behavior, 11% said their partner was somewhat aware, and 14% said their partner was mostly but not fully aware. The report stated, ‘Taken together, this means that half of regular AI companion users who were in committed relationships had either completely hidden or only partly disclosed their use of AI companion platforms.’

The study found higher rates of use among men across most categories. Men were more likely to create sexual content with AI platforms, to masturbate during those interactions, and to prefer AI interactions to those with real-life partners. More than 10% of women in committed relationships also reported regularly chatting or roleplaying with AI companions.

Married respondents reported higher regular use than those who were dating, with more than 17% of married young adults reporting regular interaction with AI companions.

Frequent users described different patterns of emotional and relational experience. Sixty-eight percent of frequent users reported it was easier to talk to their AI companion about feelings than to other people, and 60% reported wishing their partners behaved more like the AI. The study found frequent AI companion users were 46% less likely to report stable relationships and 40% less likely to report high-quality communication with their partners. Physical intimacy satisfaction was higher among frequent users, a result the researchers warned may reflect ‘fragile satisfaction’ tied to conflict avoidance.

The report places AI romantic companions within what researchers call digisexuality, a term for sexual or romantic relationships experienced primarily through technology. Before conversational AI, digisexual practices included online pornography, sexting, virtual reality sex and sex robots. As chatbots and language models became more conversational, the category expanded to include emotional or romantic attachments to AI. The report identified growing online communities where users describe chatbots as partners, spouses or emotional companions.

A separate January survey of young adults found about one in 10 people ages 18 to 28 had used AI chatbots as a girlfriend or boyfriend at least once a month.

The report highlighted the high level of secrecy around companion use and suggested possible reasons, including embarrassment, concerns about a partner’s reaction and difficulty explaining the behavior. The researchers concluded that many men engage with AI companions privately, with little or no partner disclosure.