Staff Reports
On his radio show this week, Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow warned about a rising “AI community” of relationships, sexbots, and virtual companions that, he says, are beginning to supplant real human connection. That warning matters because it pushes a conversation the left and tech bros prefer to dodge: what happens when people start choosing algorithms over one another? The segment didn’t drop a brand-new scientific bombshell, but it did amplify real surveys and studies that should make parents, lawmakers, and community leaders sit up straight.
Marlow sounded the alarm — and he’s echoing hard facts
Marlow called out what many feel but few admit: these chatbots and virtual lovers are not just toys. He called them an “AI community” and warned they’re replacing human bonds in some places. That sounds dramatic until you back up and look at the numbers. An Institute for Family Studies/YouGov poll finds about 11% of young adults say they’re open to an AI friend and 1% already have one. Among unmarried young adults, 7% say they’d be open to a romantic partnership with AI, and one in four young people say AI could replace real-life romance. Those aren’t majority numbers. But they are big enough to be worrying — especially because use skews young and could grow fast.
Market boom, mixed science, real risks
The market side is obvious: companion apps and chatbot platforms have exploded. Psychology outlets and reporting show millions of users on major platforms and a multi-hundred percent rise in companion services. Academic work is already finding mixed outcomes. A major mixed-methods study of intensive chatbot users linked heavy, intimate use to lower well‑being for people who already had small social circles. Other research shows some users find comfort and meaning in bots, while others end up lonelier. Translation: for some people these bots are consoling; for others they’re a dangerous substitute for actual help and real relationships.
What conservatives should demand — and what families must do
We should take three practical steps. First, demand common-sense guardrails: transparency so users know what an AI can and cannot do, privacy protections for intimate data, and age limits so firms don’t market sexbots to teens. Second, hold tech companies accountable; there’s money in loneliness and they shouldn’t be free to monetize mental-health gaps with algorithms. Third, rebuild civic institutions that make human ties: churches, clubs, and strong families. If the culture pushes people away from community, don’t be surprised when a machine sells itself as company.
Call it alarmism if you like, but prudence looks better than surprise. The rise of AI companions is not a tidy, sci‑fi event; it’s a slow cultural shift that will affect marriages, mental health, and privacy. Conservatives should lead here — not with technophobia, but with clear rules, common sense, and a renewed insistence that human life is not an app. If we don’t, the machines will be happy to take our place. And they’ll probably be even worse at fixing the dishwasher.
