The initial instance Alesandra Madison’s husband integrated AI into their partnership occurred in the latter part of 2024.

Having overlooked her customary evening genuflection, she recounted, her husband consulted ChatGPT on the appropriate method to chastise her. The extensive linguistic model proposed “a dual penalty”—to inscribe a hundred sentences asserting “I shall recall to genuflect for my Dom each evening” concurrently maintaining the kneeling posture throughout.

Despite the pair commencing their exploration of kink within their marital union a decade and a half prior—their dynamic being one of dominance and submission—the penalty conceived by AI represented an unfamiliar domain for them.

Subsequently, Madison, a 44-year-old resident of Los Angeles, now perceives AI as “a potent augmentation instrument” for kink practices. She elaborated, “Frequently, within dominant-submissive relationships, should the submissive transgress—given mutual agreement—a punitive measure is typically applied. Essentially, one seeks a tailored consequence commensurate with the infraction. It functions as a novel perspective on your bond.”

AI signifies a distinct progression regarding the allocation of power for individuals engaged in bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism—collectively known as BDSM. This lifestyle framework, as highlighted by all individuals interviewed by WIRED for this report, rests upon the fundamental principles of agreement, security, discourse, and reliance. Nonetheless, for those grappling with issues of confidence, or who merely desire an unbiased forum to inquire about BDSM, AI is emerging as an ever-more attractive alternative.

“I have derived benefit from AI assisting me in comprehending my role more profoundly as a submissive. Occasionally, I pose inquiries or delineate concepts that perplex me, requesting its aid in clarification,” a user articulated on the r/SubSanctuary subreddit, a community where dialogues encompass subjects such as impact play, the sensation of “possessing ownership,” and navigating the conclusion of a relationship. Madison indicates various rationales behind the allure of AI dominants for particular submissives. They offer perpetual accessibility, facile personalization—“One can configure them as either lighthearted or severe,” she conveyed in a video—and present minimal hazard for novice explorers.

However, universal acceptance is lacking. Within the identical subreddit, AI dominants faced vehement criticism, labeled as “insubstantial amusement,” “perilous,” and “dystopian.” “The directives issued by an AI dominant can resemble a mere inventory,” remarked Amp Somers, a 36-year-old sex educator based in San Francisco who alternates between dominant and submissive capacities.

While discussions proliferate and escalate, the market has experienced a surge. Joi AI stands among numerous platforms—including Character.AI, Replika, and Soulmaite—enabling patrons to fashion and tailor chatbots for BDSM role-playing scenarios. As per the corporation, which promotes itself as an “AI-lationships” hub and a remedy for dating applications, its “clientele has expanded fivefold in 2025 relative to 2024.” Numerous sex professionals, notably Alix Lynx and Jenna Starr, have granted Joi permission to utilize their imagery (the firm opted not to disclose precise user figures). Programmers are likewise hastening to devise applications for role-play chatbots that constitute “more than mere erotic content dissemination, rather something centered on immersive, astute dialogue with a dominant character.” Even Oxy shop, an internet-based purveyor of BDSM equipment for submissive males who favor wearing chastity devices, has commenced providing an AI-powered “BDSM conversation” for its subscribers, affording them the opportunity to immerse themselves in diverse dominatrix imaginings; “Yield to Mandy” or “Comply with Mike,” the site proclaims.

Viewing adult films may constitute a quiescent encounter, yet “an AI chatbot furnishes individuals with a venue to discuss, convey, and elucidate their erotic imaginings,” stated Carolina Bandinelli, an associate professor at the University of Warwick whose academic work centers on the digital phenomenology of affection. She noted, “The concept of orchestrating your domination precisely as desired is one of the foundational fantasies underpinning the relationship between humanity and AI—the capacity to sculpt and fashion our companion.”