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A 2025 survey of U.S. adults found about 28% say they’ve had at least one intimate or romantic relationship with an AI chatbot.

A Harvard Business School case notes that by 2023, Replika (an app featuring a chatbot that acts as a virtual friend, mentor, or romantic partner) had around 10 million users, and roughly 40% of those who used its “partner” mode described the relationship as romantic.

A recent survey of high school students reported about 19% had a romantic relationship with AI, and nearly half knew someone who had.

A 2025 mental-health survey suggests over 40% of people seeking help from AI mention relationship issues as a key reason they use chatbots.

In this episode, we hit you with a story that absolutely floored us—a married woman who turned to ChatGPT for the emotional connection her husband wasn't providing.

She went looking for connection, depth, presence… and she found it in a place no one expected: online. What started as late-night curiosity became emotional oxygen. 

This is a story about why the “bare-minimum male” is going extinct.

We unpack:

• Why men think they can stay low-level and women will never leave
• How emotional starvation pushes women toward digital companionship
• Why AI is becoming a surprising mirror for unmet needs in relationships
• And why her story is proof that women don’t have to settle when a man refuses to grow