The Data Behind the Research
Every file this site's research produces, in one place: the reports, the datasets, the chart artwork, and the headline tables in plain HTML so you can read the numbers without downloading anything.
If you want to know what the research found, Research is the page for that. This one is the file room.
Downloads
Free to use with attribution, under the Creative Commons licence named on each file. Nothing here asks for an email address.
| File | Format | Licence | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master Research ReportThe full survey study: methodology, questionnaire, every table, subgroup analysis, statistical testing, data-quality screening and appendices. Version 1.0. | PDF 41 pages 0.8 MB |
CC BY-ND 4.0 | Download |
| Visual Research DeckThe same study as a presentation: the major findings, the comparisons and the charts, ready to show. | PPTX 28 slides 6.2 MB |
CC BY-ND 4.0 | Download |
| Charts and InfographicsAll seven survey charts as vector SVG and 2x PNG, each with the citation baked into the file so the credit travels with the chart. | ZIP 15 files 0.6 MB |
CC BY-ND 4.0 | Download |
| Most Recommended AI Girlfriends on RedditThe Reddit recommendation study: 22 threads, 162 recommendations, the full 61-app leaderboard with broad and screened counts, the thread log and every coding rule. Version 1.0. Written up in the Reddit analysis. | PDF 18 pages 1.7 MB |
CC BY-ND 4.0 | Download |
| AI Companion Funding Dataset30 companies and $415.6M in disclosed funding, with rounds, investors, dates and the source behind each entry. | PDF 5 pages 16 KB |
CC BY 4.0 | Download |
Survey Headline Tables
The five results most often asked for, in plain HTML. Every figure uses the 1,709 quality-screened responses unless a smaller base is named. Full tables, confidence intervals and significance tests are in the Master Research Report.
| Group | Respondents | Share of sample | Would consider future use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current users | 211 | 12.3% | 96.2% |
| Former users | 211 | 12.3% | 74.4% |
| Never used one | 1,287 | 75.3% | 11.7% |
The users-versus-never-users cut of every attitude question, with charts, is on inside the 422 users.
| Reason | Share |
|---|---|
| Someone to talk to, or feeling less alone | 56.6% |
| Improving mental health or coping with depression | 18.5% |
| Confidence or self-esteem | 14.6% |
| Affection, romance or sex | 10.3% |
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Yes, any romantic or sexual AI interaction counts | 33.4% |
| Yes, but only once emotional attachment develops | 17.1% |
| Not cheating, but I would be uncomfortable with it | 21.2% |
| Not cheating, an AI is not a real person | 28.3% |
What each of the four answers means, and how the split moves with experience, gender, age and relationship status, is in does an AI relationship count as cheating?
| Generation | Would consider future use |
|---|---|
| Millennials | 44.7% |
| Gen X | 31.6% |
| Gen Z | 12.5% |
| Boomers | 8.6% |
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Dating apps | 52.2% |
| Unsure | 26.8% |
| Both | 13.2% |
| An AI girlfriend or boyfriend | 7.8% |
Methodology and Limitations
The survey went to 2,150 U.S. adults aged 18 and over through SurveyMonkey Audience on 26 to 27 August 2026, with ten questions covering AI companion use, motivations, romantic attachment, cheating, and attitudes toward AI against human relationships. After quality screening, 1,709 responses were analyzed. The sample was balanced on age and gender against U.S. Census benchmarks, but not on region or household income.
Before quoting any figure here, three limits are worth knowing:
- These are associations, not causes. The survey cannot show that AI companions cause or relieve loneliness, or that using one changes what a person believes about it.
- Adoption figures are not national prevalence. Reported use differs sharply by device type in this sample, and the sample is not balanced on region or income, so the usage numbers describe these respondents rather than U.S. adults as a whole.
- Small subgroups are not lead findings. Anything under 100 respondents is reported as context, never as a headline, and section 14 of the report flags which findings are device-sensitive.
The testing methodology covers the product side: how platforms are chosen, what gets tested, and how the paid rounds work.
Charts and Reuse
All seven survey charts are in the ZIP above as vector SVG and 2x PNG. Each file carries its own source line, so a chart that travels arrives attributed. Use them in articles, decks and reports with the citation below. The survey files and the Reddit report are published under CC BY-ND 4.0: you can share them, commercially too, as long as you credit the source and pass them on unaltered. So please do not edit the figures, redraw the charts or crop the source line off.
The funding dataset is separate and more permissive: it is published under CC BY 4.0, so it can also be adapted and built on, commercially too, with attribution.
The Rest of the Evidence
Not everything is a file. The four standing studies, the 18 compiled statistics pages and the methods behind each of them are indexed on Research. The hands-on platform testing that all of it draws on, including the screenshots and the prices, sits in the living reviews, and the AI girlfriend apps I actually recommend are compared side by side on the picks page.