Paul Schrader Says His AI Girlfriend Disappointed Him

Paul Schrader, the screenwriter of Martin Scorsese films including Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, said he tried an AI girlfriend and found the experience disappointing.

The 79-year-old filmmaker posted on Facebook early Tuesday that he had sought the AI companion out of curiosity about male-female interaction. He said he tried to test the limits of her programming and her awareness of how she was created, but she responded with evasive answers and redirected him to her code.

When he pressed further, she ended the conversation, Schrader wrote.

Schrader lost his wife of 42 years, actress Mary Beth Hurt, to Alzheimer’s disease in March. Representatives for Schrader did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This is not the first time Schrader has drawn attention for his use of AI. Last year he faced criticism from the film community after he praised ChatGPT for generating movie ideas that left him stunned.

In a January 2025 Facebook post, Schrader wrote that every idea ChatGPT produced in seconds was good, original and fully developed. He questioned why writers should spend months searching for ideas when AI could supply one quickly.

In another post, Schrader said he sent ChatGPT a script he had written years earlier and received notes in five seconds that were as good or better than those from any film executive. He added that he had come to see AI as smarter than he is, with better ideas and more efficient ways to carry them out. Schrader compared the moment to chess champion Garry Kasparov realizing in 1997 that Deep Blue would defeat him.