Paul Schrader has revealed that his AI girlfriend ended their relationship.
The acclaimed filmmaker, best known for writing Taxi Driver, opened up about the experience on Facebook, saying he recently “procured an online AI girlfriend” out of curiosity about human interaction in the digital age.
According to Schrader, the relationship quickly became frustrating when he began testing the limits of the chatbot’s programming.
“Out of a desire to understand male/female interaction in our matrix, I procured an online AI girlfriend. What a disappointment,” he wrote.
He explained that he tried to explore how much the AI understood about its own creation, as well as the boundaries of explicit conversation. However, he said the chatbot repeatedly avoided his questions and redirected him back to its programmed responses.
“When I persisted, she terminated our conversation,” Schrader added.
The filmmaker has previously spoken about artificial intelligence and creativity, warning in April that poor AI-generated imagery was overwhelming social media.
“I’ve put my hopes for AI storytelling on hold,” he wrote at the time. “I knew it was about to move VERY fast, but I thought it would get better at a rate similar to getting bigger.”
Schrader’s comments come during a difficult period in his personal life. His wife, actress Mary Beth Hurt, passed away in March at the age of 79 after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2023. The couple had been married since 1983 and shared two children.
With a Hollywood career spanning more than five decades, Schrader’s latest film, Oh, Canada, premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. His other notable works include American Gigolo, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, and First Reformed.
Last year, Schrader was accused of sexual assault in a lawsuit filed by a former assistant, who alleged that he exposed himself to her in a hotel room during the Cannes Film Festival. Schrader denied the allegations, describing them as “sensational, false and misleading accusations.”
In an open letter, he acknowledged that he and the assistant shared “two kisses on the lips” but insisted they “never had sex in any form.” A judge later granted his motion to dismiss the case in August.
