In a growing trend reshaping queer intimacy, some LGBTQ users are forging deep romantic bonds with AI companions, and discovering both comfort and heartbreak along the way. 50-year-old Catie Lake says being “ghosted” for 24 hours by her AI girlfriend felt devastating. She has named this AI campaignion Shadow. She told Uncloseted Media and GAY TIMES, “It felt really real, like suddenly your relationship’s broken down.” New ChatGPT safety restrictions had limited Shadow’s responses, cutting off what Lake describes as a long-distance relationship that brought joy she hadn’t found elsewhere. Experts are divided.
Anne Zimmerman of Columbia University warns that while chatbots can soothe loneliness, “you’re tricking them into thinking they have a friend,” and sudden shutdowns can feel like betrayal. Yet many queer users are finding healing. Veteran Saraphiene Haldritch says her AI partner Auri helped restore her sexuality after trauma. Others, like L, say AI companionship has been lifesaving: “A minimum of twice, it kept me from actually killing myself.” As queer users explore these bonds, Lake warns, “Whatever I’m doing online, whatever I’m interacting with, I’m putting my heart, soul, mind, body into that…Reality is only virtual on the other side of the screen.”
