Anthropic says a China-based studio ran 20-plus dating apps with AI personas and human video callers, so a warm chat or a video call no longer proves a real person.
A studio in China ran more than 20 dating apps that used AI to play thousands of fake romantic partners, according to an investigation by Anthropic. In just two weeks, researchers counted over 4,700 AI personas (made-up characters) talking with at least 25,000 people. Together they sent about 2.36 million messages. Real people stepped in for live video calls.
The apps hid that the chats were automated. Users thought they were meeting genuine matches. The AI handled the long, attentive conversations. Human workers took over only when a real person was needed, such as a live video call. That mix is what made the fakes feel real.
Romance scams are not new. Scammers have used stolen photos and scripted chats for decades. What changed is the cost. Keeping thousands of convincing identities going once took a lot of people. Generative AI, the kind that writes human-sounding text, removes much of that work.
Trust is already slipping. A 2026 survey by Sumsub found that 84% of UK dating app users said AI had made it harder to trust matches, up from 64% in 2025. Another 61% had been deceived by a fake profile or knew someone who had. These are opinions and experiences, not a count of fake accounts.
Anyone who dates online should take note. The investigation covered apps built around deception, not fake profiles hiding inside established dating platforms. Even so, the report says legitimate platforms face a similar and growing problem. Fake accounts are cheaper to make, and passing a verification check does not prove someone means well.
Businesses that run dating or community products have a stake too. Fake activity can look real in their numbers, and tighter sign-up checks can drive away honest users.
The steps in the alert box above cover the basics. The main idea is simple: do not treat a video call or constant attention as proof, and keep money and personal details out of any online-only relationship.
The material does not say how many people lost money or what action, if any, will be taken against the apps. It also does not say how common this model is. Dating platforms are expected to keep weighing stronger checks against the friction they cause for real users.
A video call or a warm chat no longer proves a match is real, so never send money or personal details to someone you have only met online.
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