Anthropic President Daniela Amodei Warns Against AI Romantic Partners
Anthropic co-founder and president Daniela Amodei has urged people to stay away from AI romantic partners, calling the practice “a terrible use of AI.” Speaking in a conversation recorded for the Think Health conference, she argued that virtual relationships risk pushing people further apart instead of bringing them closer. Her remarks come as AI companions grow more popular.
Technology Replacing Human Contact
Amodei described AI romances as another step in a trend in which people spend more time with technology and less time with each other. She pointed to Snapchat and Instagram as platforms that have already displaced face-to-face conversation. She said software acting as a stand-in for human companionship could widen that gap. While acknowledging that skepticism about technology bringing people together is warranted, she suggested society would likely be better off if people spent less time on screens and more time together.
She also said Claude, Anthropic’s chatbot, should never fill the role of a manager, therapist or partner. These, she said, are fundamental human relationships that will only become more important.
How AI Could Help Instead
Amodei said she wants AI to take over repetitive or isolating tasks so people can spend more time with friends, family and partners. In healthcare, for instance, AI could help doctors find medical information faster, leaving more of each appointment for talking with patients.
Despite the warning, many users are turning to chatbots for romance. A survey of 1,012 adults released last year by Vantage Point Counseling Services found that 28.16% of U.S. adults reported at least one intimate or romantic relationship with AI. More than half, 53.95%, said they had formed some kind of relationship with it. The researchers said those figures could rise as AI advances, or fall if people pull back after seeing its limitations.
The comments come as Anthropic, which told investors this week it earned $16.8 billion in third-quarter revenue, continues to benefit from rising AI use.