In December, there was a crazy discussion on the I Need You Guys podcast about an actor who’s allegedly romantically involved with an AI chatbot. According to co-host Max Silvestri, this dude brings his devices everywhere so he can interact with it. They never name the actor, but describe him as someone who is not quite A-list, but still very “well-known.” They also added that while he’s a big deal in the TV world, he has been in movies, too.

The rumor made its way to the usual places, like TikTok, Reddit and Deuxmoi. Thanks to the hints dropped about the Chatbox Casanova’s identity, the Internet decided that the actor in question was Zach Braff. Last week, Zach issued a denial on his Instagram Stories that he is in a relationship with a chatbot. He said that this is a storyline in an episode of the Scrubs reboot.

“I’m not dating a chatbot,” Braff wrote. “I can’t believe I have to type these words. It is a storyline in an upcoming ep of Scrubs. Maybe it came from that? Not sure. But not me. Love, The guy not dating his chatbot. Please update all gossip sites.”

The actor shared the statement alongside screenshots from the podcast, hosted by comedians Max Silvestri, Jenny Slate, and Gabe Liedman. The group vaguely discussed “a prominent Hollywood actor dating a chatbot” during a December 2025 episode of I Need You Guys, which featured guest Kumail Nanjiani.

“There’s a well-known actor who is currently in a romantic relationship with his AI chatbot,” Silvestri, 43, said on the podcast. “And [he] brings the chatbot with him places and talks to the chatbot. I think on the phone or computer or whatever.”

“How well known is this actor?” Nanjiani, 47, asked.

“Very. As near A-list as TV can get you,” Silvestri said in the episode. “This person’s also done films.”

“Is he self-aware about how f—ing weird it is, or he thinks it’s okay?” Nanjiani asked.

“From my understanding, the little bit I’ve heard, is that there is a self-awareness, but in kind of like a, ‘Yeah, sorry you’re not on board with the future’ [way],” Silvestri chimed in.

Later in the episode, Silvestri texted the name of the actor in the alleged relationship to a group chat of the podcast hosts and Nanjiani.

“Perfect! I will say, good description, not A-list,” Nanjiani said in response to receiving the text.

Slate, 43, chimed in to seemingly discourage the conversation. “We can’t put this on our podcast. It’s not nice,” Slate said.

“Also I had no idea until tonight (because I’m not on TikTok) that these folks were the origin of this?” Braff wrote along with more screenshots from the podcast.

“I feel like now is a good time to be kind to people,” Braff added on the next slide.

“Have never mentioned this man’s name in my life,” Silvestri wrote in response to Braff’s Instagram Stories posts on his own Instagram Stories on Friday, March 13. “Aren’t there more important stories in the world right now? Between tariffs and energy prices, the average American can barely afford to charge their girlfriend.”

[From People]

That really must be a wild rumor to hear about yourself. I similarly never in my life thought I’d ever type the words, ”Zach Braff denies dating an AI chatbot.” We have entered a new era of gossip. Now that ole Zachy B has set the record straight, there’s still a pretty insane blind item to be solved here. There are a lot of actors that fit Silvestri’s profile. I hope that whoever it is, someone in their life stages an intervention and gets them help.

Someone dating a chatbot does sound like the plot of a Scrubs episode. I’m enjoying the reboot a lot more than I expected to, and cautiously like how they’ve addressed 2026-era issues with both patients and the staff. Episode four dealt with a patient experiencing orthorexia nervosa, which studies have found is exacerbated by things like social media and wellness influencers. The patient’s online habits played a role in the storyline. I’m not surprised they’re also tackling an AI relationship, too. It would really weird if that’s how Zach’s name got attached to this blind item, though.

Photos credit: Jeffrey Mayer/Avalon