The world of online dating and adult entertainment is undergoing a transformation that few could have predicted even five years ago. At the heart of this revolution are AI-generated girlfriends—virtual companions who flirt, chat, and even send explicit photos or videos to paying subscribers. These digital creations, powered by rapid advances in artificial intelligence and image-generation technology, are drawing both fascination and concern from industry insiders, campaigners, and users alike.
At the TES adult industry conference in Prague last month, the buzz was all about these new AI companions. Delegates noted a striking surge in websites offering users the chance to form relationships with AI-generated girlfriends. For a monthly fee and the purchase of digital tokens, subscribers can chat, flirt, and even exchange explicit content with their chosen virtual partners. The technology is so advanced that users can select from a roster of ready-made personalities—like Eleanor, a 24-year-old Polish historian, Isabelle, a 25-year-old NYPD detective, or Brooke, a 39-year-old Miami housewife—or even design their own fantasy companion from scratch.
According to reporting from The Guardian, these sites offer a dizzying array of customization options. Subscribers can dictate their AI girlfriend’s age, profession (anything from yoga teacher to lawyer to gynecologist), personality traits (such as "submissive: obedient, yielding and happy to follow" or "innocent: optimistic, naive, and sees the world with wonder"), and physical appearance down to hair, eye, and skin color. For those who want a more risqué experience, some AI girlfriends are programmed to immediately remove their clothes, while others require users to build up a virtual relationship first. "It’s like a game, and the goal is to develop that full relationship," an employee of Candy.ai, one of the industry’s new heavyweights, explained at the conference.
What’s driving this sudden boom? Developers at the conference pointed to massive improvements in large language models and AI-generated images. Most of these sites still rely heavily on text and still images, but short AI-generated videos are quickly becoming more common. The demand is highest among young adults, particularly those aged 18 to 24, who grew up playing video games and creating avatars. Alina Mitt of Joi AI, a site specializing in what she calls "ai-lationships," described the market as "super dynamic right now—they appear, they burn out and they’re replaced by another 10. You need to be brave and strong to stay in this market. It’s like a bloody war."
Industry leaders are quick to tout the supposed benefits of AI girlfriends over traditional webcam businesses. Steve Jones, who runs an AI porn site, asked a provocative question: "Do you prefer your porn with a lot of abuse and human trafficking, or would you rather talk to an AI?" He elaborated, "We hear about human trafficking, girls being forced to be on camera 10 hours a day. You’ll never have a human trafficked AI girl. You’ll never have a girl who is forced or coerced into a sex scene that she’s so humiliated by, that she ends up killing herself. AI doesn’t get humiliated, it’s not going to kill itself." For Jones and others, the absence of exploitation and the ability to operate 24/7 without breaks or emotional distress is a major selling point.
Yet, not everyone is convinced this is a step forward. Campaigners for women’s rights have raised the alarm about the stereotypes these AI companions may reinforce. Laura Bates, author of The New Age of Sexism, notes that AI girlfriends are "programmed to be nice and pliant and subservient and tell you what you want to hear." There’s also growing anxiety around the possibility of AI-generated child sexual abuse imagery. Developers at the Prague conference discussed the need for built-in moderation systems that use keywords and phrases such as "kid" or "little sister" to trigger alarms, but the fact remains that many sites allow users to dress their AI companions in school uniforms—a feature that is deeply troubling to many observers.
Technological advances are also raising the bar for realism. Daniel Keating, CEO of an AI girlfriend company, gave a presentation at the conference highlighting the difference between mediocre and high-quality AI-generated women. According to Keating, poor-quality AI produces "an overly polished, plastic smoothness, shiny in the wrong places," while the best AI girlfriends incorporate "natural skin textures, bumps, imperfections, moles, freckles, slight asymmetries that appear much more natural." His company even licenses images of established adult performers to create AI twins, allowing these performers to earn non-stop income without ever stepping in front of a camera again. "It’s a win. Costs are lower. Creators love this because they don’t have to get dressed up and shoot the content," Keating said.
The business case for AI girlfriends is undeniably strong. Sites like Candy.ai offer a range of services, from adult content to deep, meaningful conversations. "If you want more adult-type relationships, like porn, we have this content. Or if you prefer to have deep conversations, that’s there as well. It really depends on what the user needs," a Candy.ai employee explained. Most users are heterosexual men, but AI boyfriends are also available for those who want them.
But as the sector booms, established dating platforms are feeling the pressure. An advertising executive with Ashley Madison, a website known for facilitating discreet relationships, voiced concern about the rise of AI dating. "AI dating is very new for us. How do we deal with competitors which allow you to build your own fantasy rather than having a real connection with a woman? Some people opt out of having real connections because they want to build whatever they want in their head. In the end when you want to actually meet someone, no one’s going to fulfil that expectation."
There’s also a darker side to the anonymity and flexibility AI offers. Steve Jones candidly admitted, "People will say things to an AI that would be abusive if they said them to a real person. Like: ‘Hey stupid slut, what’s up?’ In a fantasy roleplaying game, people like to be different than how they are in the real world." For some, AI girlfriends offer a risk-free environment to practice social skills or explore fantasies; for others, the lack of boundaries is a cause for concern.
This explosion of AI-driven adult companionship comes at a time when artificial intelligence is reshaping industries across the board. As reported by Business Insider, even pop culture icons like Taylor Swift have been compared to the AI revolution for their ability to adapt and stay ahead of the curve. Joe Ciolli, in anticipation of his upcoming newsletter First Trade, recently drew parallels between Swift’s career and the ongoing AI boom, highlighting how both have managed to "reinvent themselves in response to changing times."
With new AI girlfriend businesses "appearing like mushrooms," as Alina Mitt put it, and technology improving at breakneck speed, the only certainty is that the landscape will continue to evolve. Whether these virtual companions will ultimately empower users, reinforce troubling stereotypes, or disrupt real-world relationships remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the future of online intimacy is already here, and it’s powered by lines of code rather than flesh and blood.
