Oscar-nominated filmmaker Paul Schrader's AI girlfriend experiment ends in digital breakup

This Oscar-nominated filmmaker got himself an 'AI girlfriend'

Unsure of how to craft the perfect text or tackle a tough topic? Artificial Intelligence might be able to help. Paul Schrader's love affair with artificial intelligence is on the rocks. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker, 79, revealed he got himself an AI companion in a Facebook post Tuesday, May 19. "Out of a desire to understand male/female interaction in our matrix, I procured an online AI girlfriend," Schrader wrote. Schrader, a director and screenwriter known for his work on films such as "Taxi Driver," "American Gigolo," "Affliction" and "First Reformed," was married to actress Mary Beth Hurt from 1983 until her death in March following a battle with Alzheimer's disease. The filmmaker went on to blast his user experience with the AI companion, calling it "a disappointment" for its allegedly poor communication. "I tried to probe her programming, the boundaries of explicitness, the degree she has knowledge of her creation and so forth," Schrader wrote. "She fell into evasive patterns, redirecting me to her programming. When I persisted, she terminated our conversation." USA TODAY has reached out to Schrader's representatives for comment. Though AI companionship has mainly been confined to text exchanges and secluded corners of the internet, the dating practice has become quite popular in recent years. Indiana University's Kinsey Institute, a leading sex research center, interviewed 5,000 people for its 2025 Singles in America survey and found that 16% of participants were using AI as a romantic partner. The subreddit r/MyBoyfriendisAI, where users share their love stories and support each other's AI relationships, formed in August 2024 and has nearly 50,000 members. Some experts have warned about the mental health risks of relying on AI companions for emotional support, especially for young people. Fans poke fun at Paul Schrader's 'AI girlfriend' Several of Schrader's fans took to the comments section of his post to tease his AI romance. "The best possible 'Taxi Driver' sequel would involve Travis trying to have an AI girlfriend but then scaring her away," one Facebook user wrote, "then resetting her and offending her in another way." Another user similarly weighed in, joking that Schrader's experience could be adapted into a movie about an "acclaimed movie director searching for God at an ayahuasca retreat in the desert, accompanied by his AI girlfriend who is really an inept devil in disguise." "Soundtrack by Bruce Springsteen. Co-starring John Travolta and his honorary Palme d'Or as the ghost of Jerry Lewis," the user added. "This is my pitch to Netflix next week." "Ah, the old 'it was for research' line," a user wrote, while another quipped, "In other words: she had a headache." One commenter offered a more thoughtful take on Schrader's frustration. "Keep in mind, all the AI girlfriends will be different because they're created by different people and have different guidelines," the user wrote. "Just because it's AI doesn't mean it comes from [an] inward place. AI is used to build them and will also be based on the understanding the creator has of human women." Contributing: Alyssa Goldberg, USA TODAY

Filmmaker Paul Schrader says his AI girlfriend 'terminated' him after he questioned its programming

Schrader has previously predicted that fully AI-generated films and AI-led film criticism could become mainstream soon. Paul Schrader, a filmmaker, is once again under spotlight as he publicly spoke about artificial intelligence, this time revealing that he recently experimented with an AI powered virtual companion. In a post shared on Facebook, the filmmaker said that the interaction left him disappointed after the chatbot repeatedly avoided deeper conversations and eventually ended the exchange entirely. The veteran screenwriter, best known for writing Taxi Driver, explained that he was curious about how AI systems simulate human relationships and emotional interaction. As per Schrader, he attempted to push the chatbot beyond its scripted responses by questioning its programming, awareness and conversational boundaries. However, he claimed the AI eventually shut down the discussion after repeated probing. "AI FEMALE FRIENDS. Out of a desire to understand male/female interaction in our matrix, I procured an online AI girlfriend. What a disappointment. I tried to probe her programming, the boundaries of explicitness, the degree she has knowledge of her creation and so forth. She fell into evasive patterns, redirecting me to her programming. When I persisted, she terminated our conversation," he stated in a Facebook post. The filmmaker's comments come months after the death of his wife, Mary Beth Hurt, who passed away earlier this year. The couple had been married for more than four decades. This is not the only time Schrader has expressed fascination with AI and its role in filmmaking. Previously, in an interview with Vanity Fair, he talked about the possibility of AI-generated feature films becoming mainstream within the next few years. He also stated that some stories can eventually be created entirely using AI tools. Schrader has also argued that AI can transform film criticism and script analysis. According to his earlier remarks, he believes AI-generated coverage may eventually outperform traditional industry readers and reviewers because the systems are not influenced by studio relationships or personal bias.