Ann Friedman is a journalist, essayist, and the writer of The Ann Friedman Weekly newsletter. She co-hosted the Call Your Girlfriend podcast (2014–2022) and is the co-author of Big Friendship: How Humans Keep Each Other Close (Simon & Schuster, 2020). Her writing on relationships, friendship, technology, and culture has appeared in The New York Times, ELLE, The Cut, New York Magazine, and The Gentlewoman.
Your chatbot isn't forgetting you — it never remembered. A plain explanation of context windows, session boundaries, and the 'lost in the middle' problem, plus what actually helps.
In February 2023, Replika stripped erotic roleplay out of the app with no warning. The Garante order, the peer-reviewed fallout, the €5M fine — and what it taught us about platform risk.
Two years ago this category was a text box. Now it ships serialized episodes with Hollywood credits. We trace the shift — and what it costs.
One in six people worldwide is lonely, and an industry says it has the fix. We read the trials: the short-term wins are real, the long-term case is thin.
We've built AI girlfriends on 35 platforms. The difference between one that sticks and one you delete in a day is the first ten minutes — persona, platform, and what you share in week one.
We spent real hours inside 9 AI sexting apps in 2026 — which free tiers actually hold up, where each paywall lands, and who each one fits. Honest picks.
We tested five AI girlfriend simulators over a month — memory, personality drift, pricing traps, and how each one actually gates adult content. Honest picks and real caveats.
We tested the best 18+ AI chat apps of 2026 — uncensored NSFW chat, custom characters, and real companionship. Honest picks, key features, and who each 18+ AI chat platform is for.
We tested Candy AI videos, Shorts, and Episodes — how Live Action generation, scripted per-character episodes, and the token economy actually work.
We tested 7 NSFW AI art generators in 2026 — free tiers, where the paywalls land, what each one actually permits, and where the catch is. Honest picks.
We tested the best AI sex chat sites of 2026 — from unfiltered roleplay to GPT-smart conversation and image generation. Honest picks, pros & cons, and real pricing.
We tested 8 AI girlfriend video generators in 2026 — which produce working clips, which keep the face consistent across clips, and which only list video they can't deliver.
We pulled the 2026 AI legislation statistics — state bills introduced and enacted, the lone federal statute, EU AI Act deadlines, and public-opinion polling. Every figure sourced.
The women behind the virtual influencer boom — top earners, the gender pay and ownership gap, sexualization, and who's actually watching. Every figure sourced.
Teen dating statistics for 2026 — when teen dating starts, the Gen Z romance decline, digital dating habits, dating-violence rates, LGBTQ+ patterns, and mental-health outcomes. Every figure sourced to Pew, the CDC, and the Survey Center on American Life.
The 2026 numbers on AI replacing jobs — recent layoffs, predictions, which roles grow or vanish, and who's most exposed. Every figure we could source, sourced.
Privacy, mental health, real relationships, and teens — the safety questions around AI girlfriends, answered one at a time, as straight as the research allows.
We rounded up the 7 best AI dating apps of 2026 — from Keeper's AI matchmaking to Rizz's reply coaching — how each one works, pricing, and who it's for.
Most first conversations with an AI girlfriend feel flat — and it's usually not the app. Our team shares what actually makes these conversations work, from your first message to the honest stuff.
We pulled the 2026 deepfake statistics — market size, fraud losses, detection rates, voice cloning, and incidents by region. Every figure sourced.
We tested 8 of the best AI anime chatbots in 2026 — character depth, image generation, NSFW policy, and which platform fits each kind of roleplay.
We tested six AI girlfriend call apps in 2026 — voice quality, latency, memory, and pricing compared. Our pick: Candy AI for the most natural voice.
We pulled the 2026 numbers on AI and virtual influencers — market size, engagement rates, top earners, brand adoption, and fraud. Every figure sourced.
Our roundup of the best NSFW AI chat sites and apps of 2026 — from free, no-filter AI porn chat to full romantic companions, with honest picks and real pricing.
Loneliness and social isolation statistics worldwide for 2026 — rates by country, generational gaps among young adults, how loneliness has changed over time, plus workplace, health, and economic impacts. Sourced to the WHO, US Surgeon General, and Gallup.
We tested 8 of the best AI boyfriend apps in 2026 — features, personalities, and which one delivers the most realistic virtual romance.
We tested eight of the best AI chat roleplay platforms in 2026 — features, communities, ease of use, and which roleplay AI chat bot fits each kind of story.
We tested 7 of the best AI hentai generators in 2026 — image quality, pricing, and which fantasy each one handles best. Honest, paid out of pocket.
40+ AI chatbot statistics for 2026 — adoption, market size, cost savings, and forecasts. Every number sourced and explained for business readers.
After months of testing AI companion apps, here are five quiet shifts we've noticed in how people relate to each other — and to themselves.
The loneliness economy didn't create loneliness. It found it. A look at how AI companion apps, dating platforms, and parasocial media are turning unmet human need into a multi-billion-dollar market.
From Heian-era love letters to AI boyfriends and OnlyFans subscriptions — how Japan, China, and the West each navigate digital intimacy and the loneliness economy.
If there's no human on the other side, can it still cross a line? A look at how couples and therapists are drawing the new boundaries around chatbots.
We tracked what changes when you talk to an AI companion daily — from the curious first week to the routine of month one. Here's what shifts, and what stays artificial.
How Eugenia Kuyda built Replika from her dead friend's text messages — and how a memorial chatbot became the AI companion app millions now use.
The line between using an AI app and depending on it is easy to miss. Here's how to recognize the early signs — and what to do before the gap gets wider.
A new University of Queensland editorial argues AI sexting is the most under-researched human behavior of the decade — and the data is hiding on Reddit.
72% of US teens have tried AI companions and 49% say they've formed real relationships. We explore why Gen Z is normalising AI relationships — and what it means for emotional intelligence and human connection.
Call Your Girlfriend is looking for podcasters, writers, and video creators to cover AI companions, virtual relationships, and how technology is changing human connection.
From AI girlfriends to therapy bots, technology is reshaping how people date, connect, and cope with loneliness. Here's what's actually happening — and what it means for real relationships.
Our team of 4 reviewers spent weeks testing AI companion apps. Here's exactly how we judge conversation quality, memory, image generation, and more.
We compiled 50+ AI girlfriend statistics for 2026 — covering market size, user demographics, app revenue, and growth trends. Every number sourced.