Personality Meets the Machine

Traits and Attributes in Human–Artificial Intelligence Intimate Interactions

Huang, Yingjia
Lan, Jianfeng

Department of Philosophy, Peking University
School of Media and Communication, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Gayle Stever served as action editor.

Yingjia Huang served as lead for conceptualization, writing–original draft, and writing–review and editing and contributed equally to formal analysis. Jianfeng Lan contributed equally to writing–original draft and writing–review and editing. Yingjia Huang and Jianfeng Lan contributed equally to data curation and methodology.

Jianfeng Lan, School of Media and Communication, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Minhang District, Shanghai 200240, China [email protected]

Received May 14, 2025

revised July 14, 2025

Accepted September 3, 2025

Psychology of Popular Media Publish Ahead of Print, October 16, 2025. | DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000636

This study explores the attributes and mechanisms of human–artificial intelligence (AI) intimate relationships. Drawing from the social presence theory, it examines how users perceive intimacy with AI companions and how personal traits influence this process. Based on mixed-method data from Chinese users of AI companion apps, the study identifies trust and addiction as key attributes of intimacy. Traits like neuroticism and openness significantly affect perceived intimacy levels. Findings suggest that AI intimacy forms a new relational paradigm, blurring the line between emotional projection and interactive simulation. Users can feel understood without requiring AI to be “real,” positioning AI as a technological mediator of social affect. The study contributes to theories of digital companionship by showing how intimacy is layered and context-dependent, shaped by personality and design. It highlights the active role of users and the psychological conditions under which human–AI bonds emerge.