The world of dating has changed exponentially from when our parents were 'courting', and in 2026, it continues to evolve. Just a few years ago, it was a case of tapping and swiping, whereas some nowadays are foregoing human relationships altogether – instead choosing to have an AI partner.
While it might seem easier to marry your AI lover, psychologists have warned about the dangers of dating chatbots. Elsewhere, others are still going down the route of romancing humans, but they're willing to pay far more than just the monthly subscription to a dating app.
We recently covered filmmaker Ben Zand and how he took us inside the 'goon cave' of a self-confessed serial masturbator, but diving deeper into incel culture at a time when Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere has shed light on the subject, he's also interviewed a man who claims to have spent $65,000 on 'renting' girlfriends online.
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In the YouTube documentary, Zand spoke to "T", a 27-year-old who lives with his parents in London and believes that the freedom of women has left him 'locked out' of the "sexual marketplace." Deciding he wanted a partner who would have to bend to his demands, he started paying for women online.
Zand admits that he started the documentary with the assumption that T was just into it for sex, but worringly, he said he soon realized it was something much darker.
Saying there are few cons to online girlfriends, T told Zand how the rented girlfriend is compliant and how he has "a kind of power over them that you wouldn't have in a normal relationship."
When grilled on the fact he's spent $65,000 on renting women, T explained: “I think experiences are worth paying for, if that makes sense.
“And yes, it is absolutely a lot of money. I think if you start regretting how you use your money, that's not good for you."
Zand says he was uncomfortable about the way T discusses women, so trying a different idea, he then put his anonymous subject face-to-face with three real women.
It's here that T came to a shocking realization about what his addiction to renting women was doing to him.
Trying to describe his dream woman and explain why he's reduced to paying for them online, T said he doesn't like women who don't message him back promptly, as well as the kick he gets from having the 'power' in a situation.
Each of the women tried to talk him around, stating that they don't know any modern women who'd want to be in such a submissive role and controlled by a man. There was also an uncomfortable situation where he suggested one of the women should sit on his lap, leading to Zand reprimanding T and saying that it came across as 'creepy'.
It seems something stuck with T, and toward the end of the documentary, he admitted he'd had a change of heart.
Saying he doesn't see himself going back to renting women, T concluded: "That's going to be hard. I know because at times I'm still going to feel the loneliness, but what's on me is to find healthy ways to replace those feelings."
Suggesting this could be through therapy or surrounding himself with more female friends, he hopes to counter the feelings that are dragging him to the dark side of misogyny.
Zand has vowed to keep in touch with T to see if he really does change his ways, so watch this space.