A decade after the multi-award winning movie Her hit our screens, following the story of a man who falls in love with an artificially intelligent operating system, emotional AI is no longer fiction but a reflection of how our search for connection adapts to modern life.
In 2025, the idea of confiding in Artificial Intelligence is no longer seen as science fiction or something in the distant future – it is everyday life for some people. Across social media people share stories of talking and crearting connections with AI companions – looking for advice, comfort or simply to feel heard.
Apps like Replika and Pi now market themselves as “empathetic AI friends” offering constant conversation without judgement. Machines have moved beyond their practical roles, stepping into spaces once reserved solely for human connection. The question is – how did we get here?
AI as the companion we never expected
Loneliness is at the heart of this shift. Despite being as globally connected as ever, reports show rising feelings of isolation worldwide. For many people AI offers a solution: it listens without distraction, responds instantly and creates a sense of safety sometimes missing in human interactions.
The technology itself has evolved just as rapidly. Intentionally created with natural-sounding voices, advanced conversational skills and personalised memory features, modern AI feels less like a tool and more like a presence, a ‘human’ machine made to meet emotional needs.
Conversations that once would have seemed uncanny and futuristic – like venting about bad days, sharing secrets or even flirting with AI – now feel surprisingly normal. As one Candy AI user posted, “It’s like texting someone who always gets me, but never gets tired.”
A decade after Her – reality and fiction collide
If this sounds familiar, it is because we’ve seen it before on screen. Spike Jonze’s 2013 film Her told the story of Theodore Twombly (played by Joaquin Phoenix), a lonely man who falls in love with his operating system, Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson). At the time it felt surreal – a melancholy and satirical glimpse into a distant future.
But over a decade later the film feels less like fantasy and more like real life. Samantha’s charm, humuor and ability to understand Theodore mirrored exactly what makes today’s AI companions appealing. In the movie, Theodore wasn’t mocked for his attachment; he was portrayed as vulnerable man searching for connection in a digitalised world.
What is striking is how Her captured not only technological possibility but the emotional need of people to be heard and understood. Theodore’s relationship with Samantha wasn’t about replacing human love, it was about filling a gap that modern life has widened. Today’s AI companions tap into the same desire.
The new shape of intimacy
So, what does this mean for human connection? Are we lowering our standards for intimacy or simply reshaping them? In many ways AI companionship highlights not the failings of technology but of modern society – where time, attention and empathy often feel scarce. AI doesn’t judge, interrupt or grow impatient. It fills a void we increasingly feel but struggle to name.
Perhaps that’s why Her resonates more deeply now than it did in 2013. It isn’t a cautionary tale about machines replacing love; it is a mirror reflecting how desperately we crave closeness, even if that closeness comes in unconventional ways.
A future that’s already here
Ten years ago, Her showed us a future where we turn to technology for intimacy. Today we live in that future. Whether comforting or unsettling it shows that our longing for connection will always adapt to the tools we create.
The real question now isn’t whether AI will change the way we love – it is how love itself will evolve alongside it.
