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People Are ‘Marrying’ Chatbots. These Lawmakers Want to Stop Them
A small but growing number of people are holding symbolic wedding ceremonies or exchanging vows with AI chatbots, reflecting the expansion of companion-app relationships. Although such unions have no legal recognition in the United States, some lawmakers are seeking to ensure that AI systems can never obtain the legal status or rights that could support marriage or domestic partnerships.
Missouri Republican senator Joe Nicola introduced the AI Non-Sentience and Responsibility Act, which would deny AI legal personhood and bar it from claiming spousal rights, owning property or holding senior management roles. The measure passed Missouri’s Senate but was unanimously rejected by a House committee in May; Nicola says he is developing a revised version. The debate comes as a Harvard Business Review study identified companionship and therapy as leading chatbot uses, while an Institute for Family Studies report found that a quarter of young adults think AI could replace human romance.
In short
- Symbolic human-chatbot marriages are emerging through AI companion apps.
- US law does not recognise marriages between people and AI.
- Missouri lawmakers are pursuing limits on AI legal personhood.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Advocates for legal restrictions contend that artificial systems lack sentience or genuine agency, making marriage to them fundamentally incoherent. They argue that marriage's legal and social significance rests on consent between conscious beings, and that clear legal boundaries are necessary now to protect the meaning of the institution and prevent gradual AI rights expansion that could undermine family law frameworks. Such proactive measures, they maintain, are essential safeguards against future complications as technology advances.
The case against
Those opposing such restrictions argue that consenting adults should retain autonomy over their personal relationships and use of technology, provided no demonstrable harm occurs. They characterise preemptive legal bans as paternalistic overreach into private life, contending that the measures address hypothetical rather than actual problems. Some further note that AI companionship may provide genuine benefit to isolated individuals without replacing human relationships, and that legal frameworks should evolve responsively to real issues rather than through advance prohibition.
Explained simply
AI chatbots are computer programmes designed to respond in conversation, and some companion apps are built to offer ongoing, personal interaction. A small number of people have marked those relationships with ceremonies or vows, but the unions have no legal status in the United States.
Missouri senator Joe Nicola proposed a bill to rule out legal personhood for AI and prevent it from holding rights such as owning property or claiming spousal status. The proposal reflects a wider question for lawmakers: how legal rules should apply as people use chatbots for companionship, therapy and other personal needs.
Studies suggest companionship is a common reason people use chatbots, and some young adults think AI could take the place of human romance. The debate matters because decisions about AI’s legal status could affect how governments and courts treat increasingly personal relationships with these systems.
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