AI relationships are on the rise. The divorce boom could be next

Judges are “already grappling with what to do about relationships with humans,” Palmer says, and AI companions will only complicate the matter, as they take into account the broader impact on the relationship. Children make things more complicated. When it comes to custody battles, “it is possible and likely that they will question parental judgment as they are having intimate discussions with a chatbot,” which “raises the question of how they spend time with their children.”

Although the sophisticated chatbots we use today have only been around for a few years, Yang says technology will only play a bigger role in marriage and divorce. “As improvement continues, and realism, compassion and empathy increase, more and more people in unhappy marriages who feel lonely will look for love with a robot.”

Yang has not had clients raise the issue yet, but she expects a surge in divorces in the coming years as more people turn to artificial intelligence for companionship. “We’re likely to see an increase in the rate of divorce filings. When COVID happened a few years ago, the increase in divorces was very large. We probably saw three times the amount of divorces filed from 2020 to 2022. After 2022, once things get back to normal, divorce rates go back down. But they’ll probably go back up.”

It’s already happening in some places. In the UK, a partner’s use of chatbot apps is becoming a more common factor contributing to divorce, according to the data collection service. Online divorce. The platform claims to have received an increase in the number of divorce requests this year as customers said apps like Replika and Anima created an “emotional or romantic attachment”.

Despite the turmoil this is causing, Palmer says she still believes AI relationships can be positive. “Some people find real fulfillment.” But she warns that “people need to acknowledge the limitations.” In October, California became the first state to pass a law Artificial Intelligence Regulations Act For companion chatbots. The law goes into effect in January 2026 and requires apps to have certain key features, such as age verification and break reminders for minors, and makes it illegal for chatbots to act as healthcare professionals. Fines of up to $250,000 per incident are also being imposed on companies that profit from illegal deepfakes.

In some ways, Ballmer has seen what’s happening now before with social media rather than artificial intelligence. “It could be that a partner is in touch with someone they haven’t seen in years. Or there’s a real need to connect. It’s a rare situation anymore where you don’t share social media.” Artificial intelligence is the natural evolution of that, she says. “And what I’m finding is that AI is turning into exactly that.”