62. Replaced by an AI Chatbot: A Relationship Wake Up Call

Send us Fan MailA 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 leaveHow emotional starvation pushes women toward digital companionshipWhy AI is becoming a surprising mirror for unmet needs in relationshipsAnd why her story is proof that women don’t have to settle when a man refuses to grow