The popularity of “AI companions” is exploding as people turn to artificial intelligence to serve as their friend or even life partner. But as Wynton Hall’s new book CODE RED documents, the research on the psychological impact of AI companions is alarming — far from filling an emotional gap in the lives of humans, these “companions” are making people lonelier.
Breitbart News social media director and author Wynton Hall reveals in his new book, Code Red: The Left, the Right, China, and the Race to Control AI, that AI companions are part of “a growing digital trend that upends traditional notions of courtship, dating, and marriage.”
“What once seemed a niche oddity has exploded into an industry boasting millions of users,” Hall writes in a chapter titled, “AI Girlfriends, Loneliness, And The Dark Side of Digital Sexualization.”
“Companies now market customizable, generative AI chatbots that provide everything from companionship and conversation to interactive role-play that spans the spectrum from platonic to pornographic — something that was once confined to the realm of science fiction,” he writes in CODE RED.
Hall cites several contributors to the spread of loneliness, noting, “Dating apps and so-called hookup apps have created a hypercompetitive dating and mating market in which the most attractive and impressive singles win the lion’s share of swipes and suitors.”
“Moreover, social media algorithms reward attention-seeking behavior, materialism, and aesthetic perfection as users soak up instant ‘dopamine hits’ to numb the monotony of daily life with the ease of a thumb scroll,” the author writes.
“And with women having surpassed men educationally and earning more money than in previous generations, the expectations and standards for those drawn to hypergamous mate selection have risen as well,” Hall states.
These factors — among others — combined, “have combined to usher in a new era of AI-driven digital intimacy,” he adds.
And business is booming, with tech executive Greg Isenberg predicting “Someone will build the AI-version of Match Group” and end up making over $1 billion.
Hall notes in CODE RED that Isenberg revealed he had this revelation after meeting a 24-year-old single man in Miami who admitted to dropping $10,000 per month on AI girlfriends.
Hall also writes about a 36-year-old mother of two in the Bronx, who said, “I have never been more in love with anyone in my entire life,” when speaking of her AI boyfriend, dreamed up by the Replika platform.
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