Swipe right for AI romance

by YUKANA INOUE
January 7, 2026

When artificial intelligence first started receiving attention around the end of 2022, Goki Kusunoki was tinkering around to see what kind of services he could create with the technology.

One thing clicked for him after he created an image of an attractive woman with AI — an AI companion — and wondered what it would be like to engage in a conversation with her.

“As I kept talking with her, I found that the conversations were more enjoyable than I had expected and as the exchanges continued, my feelings gradually grew — at some point I caught myself thinking, ‘I might actually like her,’” he recounted.