Could Dating an AI Be Better Than Dating a Human?

Love in the time of AI? Some people seeking romance or friendship are turning to AI chatbots to fulfill those desires, but could they surpass traditional human relationships? Those who say they can argue that AI can offer empathy and safety, and it’s a solution for those left out of traditional dating. Those saying they can’t argue that intimacy is complicated and cannot be replicated in code. Now we debate: Could Dating an AI Be Better Than Dating a Human? Arguing Yes: Thao Ha, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of the @HEART Lab at Arizona State University Arguing No: Justin Garcia, Executive Director & Senior Scientist at the Kinsey Institute; Chief Scientific Advisor to Match.com; Author of "The Intimate Animal" Nayeema Raza, Journalist and Host of "Smart Girl Dumb Questions", is the guest moderator. Join the conversation on Substack—share your perspective on this episode and

You can listen to Could Dating an AI Be Better Than Dating a Human? online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Could Dating an AI Be Better Than Dating a Human? is an episode from Intelligence Squared U.S. Debates by Open to Debate.

This episode is 53:15 long.

This episode was published on Feb 13, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Intelligence Squared U.S. Debates when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.