Humans are dependent and shaped by the ebbs and flows of our relational ties: human-to-human; human-to-animals; human-to-Source. Healthy connections have been shown to enrich the human experience, increase wellbeing, and provide a sense of purpose; particularly important in the face of rising existential threat. A lack of social connection can increase feelings of loneliness which have been shown to reduce lifespan, impact quality of life and increase vulnerability to physical and mental illness. Given the critical role that relationships play in our lives, any factor(s) that can shift and change the nature of our connections is worthy of attention.
AI, or artificial intelligence, is growing ubiquitous and our relationships are not exempt from this. How AI interjects and intervenes in our relationships is growing in complexity, catalyzing varied discourse on the matter across professionals, organizations and everyday people. For instance, a survey conducted by the UK AI Safety Institute in 2024 reveals that participants in this survey were generally opposed to humans forming relationships with AI even if it might have some therapeutic benefit, such as assuaging loneliness (65% vs. 17%). However, a 2024 article in Psychology Today published results from a US survey that contradicts the results from the UK AI Safety Institute. Specifically, the findings here suggest that younger generations, particularly Gen Zer’s are increasingly open to AI relationships – 40% of the 1,000 participants surveyed. Overall, 31% of Americans expressed a similar sentiment. And the contradictions or tensions do not stop there. A limited ethnographic analysis that I conducted of this rising phenomenon reveals and adds to the layered tapestry of this landscape.
Deeper exploration into the motivations of people who are seeking AI relationships via Reddit threads and other sources reveal that this conversation is not so much about whether AI relationships are right or wrong or a matter of do or do not as perhaps insinuated by the results of the quantitative surveys aforementioned. Rather, what I observe are real people trying to, consciously and/or unconsciously, cope with the consequences of living in a homogenizing, neurotypical-centered system designed to sever connection rather than strengthening them through the unrelenting promotion of individualism:
“The past year of my life has been one of the most productive years of my life professionally, socially,” says Travis Peacock, a neurodiverse individual. “I’m in the first healthy long-term relationship in a long time. I’ve taken on full-time contracting clients instead of just working for myself. I think that people are responding better to me. I have a network of friends now ”
In the quote above, Travis was explaining how AI helped him navigate a neurotypical world, and in so doing, also formed a positive relationship with an AI chatbot. His observations were collected by the Guardian UK in a public call for personal views on relationships with AI. Travis’ experiences are but one example that speaks to the various motivations that drive people to AI within a relational context.
Ultimately, what I’ve realized is that a binary treatment of this topic: good or bad; right or wrong; do or don’t – would not only do a disservice to the richness of this topic but also yield a dangerously limited interpretation and imagination.
In essence, the examination of AI in relationships necessitates the adoption of an orientation that embraces contradiction and complexity, and invites all extensions and aspects of human experience – seen and unseen – to better understand potential implications of this trajectory and what the future of human relationships might be as a result.
un.seen.futures and the Laboratory of Artistic Intelligence are collaborating on an exploratory space for this work. The investigation seeks to understand implications of AI in human relationships, as we acknowledge the fact that AI interaction appears to be simultaneously fulfilling and disruptive to basic human needs. Guided and informed by the unseen, our exploration aims to honour the multidimensional nature of this research topic and to help us envision futures of relationship that extend beyond current mental models and orientations.
Zemina Meghji is a consultant-in-residence with the Laboratory for Artistic Intelligence.