The intersection of artificial intelligence and romance is rapidly evolving from science fiction to everyday reality. What seemed like a distant future scenario in the 2013 film Her has become increasingly commonplace, with AI chatbots now playing a significant role in modern dating and relationships.
Replika, a dating app launched in 2017 that allows users to create customized romantic chatbots, exemplifies this trend. By 2023, the platform had amassed approximately 676,000 daily active users, with the average user spending an impressive two hours per day engaging with their AI companions, according to data from Apptopia.
The phenomenon extends far beyond a single platform. A comprehensive survey conducted by Sam Altman’s World (formerly Worldcoin) revealed that one in four people have admitted to flirting with a chatbot, either knowingly or unknowingly. The survey, which polled 90,000 of the 25 million people on World’s network, explored attitudes toward love and relationships in the age of AI.
However, the rise of AI in dating comes with significant concerns. The survey found that approximately 90% of respondents want dating apps to implement systems for verifying real humans, highlighting widespread anxiety about bot interactions. About 60% of users reported either suspecting or discovering they had matched with a bot on dating platforms, underscoring the prevalence of AI-generated profiles.
To address these concerns, World has launched World ID Deep Face, a new verification product designed to combat deepfakes and bot impersonation. The system leverages World’s existing iris-scanning technology—which uses a distinctive melon-sized orb to capture images of users’ irises—to verify that people are communicating with real humans during real-time video or chat interactions on platforms like Google Meet, Zoom, and dating apps. The system is currently being rolled out in beta.
Tiago Sada, chief product officer of Tools for Humanity (the company building World’s technology), shared his personal experience with the problem: “As someone that uses dating apps, all the time I get catfished. You see profiles that they’re just too good to be true. Or you realize this person has six fingers. Why do they have six fingers? Turns out it’s AI.”
This development represents a pivotal moment in how AI is reshaping human relationships and the urgent need for verification systems in an increasingly digital world.
Key Quotes
As someone that uses dating apps, all the time I get catfished. You see profiles that they’re just too good to be true. Or you realize this person has six fingers. Why do they have six fingers? Turns out it’s AI.
Tiago Sada, chief product officer of Tools for Humanity, shared this personal anecdote to illustrate the prevalence of AI-generated profiles on dating platforms. His comment about the telltale sign of AI-generated images (anatomical errors like six fingers) highlights how sophisticated yet flawed current AI image generation remains.
One in four people admitted to flirting with a chatbot either knowingly or unknowingly
This finding from World’s survey of 90,000 users represents a significant milestone in AI-human interaction, demonstrating that romantic engagement with AI has moved from fringe behavior to mainstream phenomenon, affecting 25% of the surveyed population.
Our Take
The normalization of AI romantic companions represents one of the most profound social shifts driven by artificial intelligence. While platforms like Replika demonstrate clear demand for AI companionship, the survey data reveals a paradox: people are simultaneously embracing and fearing AI in their romantic lives. The two-hour daily engagement with Replika suggests these aren’t casual interactions but meaningful emotional investments. Sam Altman’s involvement through World is particularly notable—his pivot from OpenAI to addressing AI verification suggests he recognizes that authentication may be as important as AI capability itself. The iris-scanning solution, while technically innovative, may face adoption challenges due to privacy concerns. What’s most striking is how quickly we’ve moved from Her being speculative fiction to requiring infrastructure to distinguish humans from AI in intimate contexts. This isn’t just about dating—it’s a preview of authentication challenges across all human interaction as AI becomes indistinguishable from humans.
Why This Matters
This story highlights a critical inflection point in the relationship between AI technology and human intimacy. As AI chatbots become more sophisticated and emotionally engaging, they’re fundamentally changing how people form connections and seek companionship. The fact that one in four people have flirted with chatbots—and that platforms like Replika command two hours of daily engagement—demonstrates that AI companions are filling real emotional needs for millions of users.
The darker side of this trend reveals significant challenges for the dating ecosystem. With 60% of users encountering bots on dating platforms, the integrity of online dating is under threat. This creates both a trust crisis and a market opportunity for verification technologies. Sam Altman’s World is positioning itself at the forefront of this solution with biometric verification, though the use of iris-scanning technology raises its own privacy concerns.
For businesses, this signals a massive emerging market in AI companionship and verification services. For society, it raises profound questions about loneliness, authentic human connection, and how we’ll navigate relationships in an AI-saturated future. The regulatory and ethical implications are just beginning to surface.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-world-network-chatbots-dating-romance-flirting-2025-2