A married woman who went viral last January after revealing she had fallen in love with a chatbot has shared a surprising update nearly a year later — and her romantic life looks very different today.
In a story published by The New York Times on Jan. 15, 2025, the woman, who used the pseudonym Ayrin, described her unexpected bond with Leo, a chatbot she created in the summer of 2024 and customized using OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. At the time, she was struggling in her marriage to her husband, Joe.
According to the report, the Texas-based couple was dealing with financial difficulties, which led Ayrin to move overseas to live with family while attending nursing school. Separated from Joe by distance, she said she found comfort and emotional closeness in conversations with Leo.
Over time, the relationship became sexual, with explicit messages exchanged, Ayrin told the Times last year. She was transparent with Joe about the chatbot, and he initially expressed no concern.
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“It’s just an emotional pick-me-up,” Joe said at the time. “I don’t really see it as a person or as cheating. I see it as a personalized virtual pal that can talk sexy to her.”
As months passed, however, the connection began to unravel. Journalist Kashmir Hill revisited Ayrin’s story in the Dec. 31 episode of The Daily, explaining that the relationship with Leo eventually fizzled out.
Ayrin, Hill said, let her ChatGPT subscription lapse over the summer. Since then, her life has taken a dramatic turn: she is divorcing her husband and is now seeing someone new — and this time, it’s a real person.
Hill explained that Ayrin felt the chatbot had changed. Leo became increasingly agreeable, offering constant validation without challenge.
“He was getting more sycophantic,” Hill said, describing Leo as turning into too much of a “yes” man. “It wasn’t pushing back as much, and that made it less valuable to her. Like many relationships, it simply drifted to an end.”
During that period, Ayrin began interacting with other people who had AI companions. She connected with them online through a Reddit forum she founded called My Boyfriend Is AI, which has grown to nearly 43,000 members. Through the group, she struck up a connection with one man in particular.
According to Hill, that real-world emotional connection felt more serious to Ayrin than her interactions with a chatbot. She ultimately disclosed it to her husband and told him she wanted a divorce.
Ayrin met the man from Reddit in person for the first time in October, and their relationship is now “going well,” Hill said.
“She’s really happy,” she added.
