Judges, Palmer says, already \u201cstruggle with what to do about affairs with humans,\u201d and AI companions will only complicate that, as they take into account the broader impact on the relationship. Children complicate the matter even more. When it comes to custody battles, \u201cit is conceivable and likely that they would question the parents\u2019 judgment because they\u2019re having intimate discussions with a chatbot,\u201d which \u201cbrings into question how they are spending time with their child.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although the sophisticated chatbots we use today have only been around for a few years, Yang claims the tech will only play a bigger role in marriages and divorces. \u201cAs it continues improving, becoming more realistic, compassionate, and empathetic, more and more people in unhappy marriages who are lonely are going to be going to seek love with a bot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yang has not had clients raise the issue yet, but she anticipates a boom in divorces in the coming years as more people turn to AI for companionship. \u201cWe\u2019ll probably see an increased rate of divorce filings. When Covid happened a few years ago, the increase in divorces was very significant. We probably saw three times the amount of divorces that were filed around 2020 to 2022. After 2022, once things got back to normal, divorce rates were back down. But it will probably go back up.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s already happening in some places. In the UK, a partner\u2019s use of chatbot apps has become a more common factor contributing to divorce, according to data collection service Divorce-Online<\/a>. The platform claims to have received an increase in the number of divorce applications this year where clients have said apps like Replika and Anima created \u201cemotional or romantic attachment.\u201d<\/p>\n