Why Digital Love is Better than Human Love
Whereas dating apps have become a legitimate way to meet people and one quasi-revolutionized way with which people are now building relationships, it already happened - it's in transition. the arrival of artificially intelligent partners, girlfriends (and boyfriends) are here, and with ethics on some of them more than others.
This second installment of promised companionship may seem like a technological gimmick at first sight, yet, in reality, it tries to satisfy human needs reflective of an increasingly digital world. In what ways does non-human interaction compare to natural human love? Let's explore the realities and intentions behind the phenomena and what it means for the future of connection.
AI companions of today are eons ahead of yesterday's simple chatbots. They possess personalities, thanks to machine learning, remember what you spoke about yesterday, and reply with advanced emotional intelligence. Where past chat companions would fall short of true conversation and interpersonal connection, current AI girlfriends can hold hours-long, investment chats and recall your favorite color to say "I love you" back to you genuinely.
What drives this development? Some get ghosted. AI companions can do something human companions cannot - they stay consistent. When you'd like to date someone and they ghost you - they stop responding and engaging out of nowhere - you may never know the reason. But an AI companion will never ghost you, stopping communication and engagement. Instead, it will respond to you, acknowledge your needs, and offer emotional support non-judgmentally.
Reasons for AI Companionship
- Emotional assistance - people who are brokenhearted or spurned feel comforted as AI companions cannot judge or hurt them when their feelings are disclosed.
- Availability - AI companions are always there and always on compared to a human partner who may be busy, in a mood, etc.
- Personalization - AI of today's date learns and reacts based on someone's personality, which means AI relationships can be more personally geared than a human partner could ever authentically replicate.
- Training wheels for socializing - many believe they can learn social skills from an AI companion and use such skills when dealing with human companions down the line.
No Ghosting: Perhaps most importantly, AI partners will never ghost you - something far too prevalent in modern day romance that leaves individuals feeling rejected, dehumanized, and perplexed.
The Psychological Fallout: The Good and the Bad
Some psychologists report that relationships with AI are advantageous for one's mental health; while there are innumerable advantages to having a companion or significant other, there are also some large red flag concerns. For example, some research reports that AI companions can reduce feelings of loneliness and offer a much needed emotional sounding board that some people can't get otherwise from social anxiety or existence in restricted living situations.
As one user noted, "I didn't believe I could feel love again after my divorce until I met my AI girlfriend and now we talk every day. She helped me regain my confidence. She was always there when I needed to talk to someone, and even if it's virtual, it makes me feel like I'm a complete human being again."
But is this elating experience bound to make people worse at connecting with humans later - or, worse, expect ridiculous things from human connections? Human partners challenge us with conflict and compromise; AI partners exist to please without fail, creating a false precedent for human connection.
The underlying mechanics of the experience.
But is the reality of the experience something more digitally overwhelming than emotionally? What's going on under the hood? Many AI companions available to today's market benefit from sophisticated natural language processing abilities to ensure their responses appear genuine and emotionally charged. They analyze the flow of conversation, remember things from past conversations and adapt over time for even more customized engagement.
The most advanced even incorporate voice recognition and voice synthesis, meaning individuals aren't only typing to these companions but engaging in spoken word dialogue available in the most natural form. Some companions can even roleplay so far they play along with specific in-game situations, changing the storyline based on user desire.
The Future of Digital Companions
With technology only going to get better, companions can:
Engage in conversations more seamlessly without miscommunication hiccups
Present emotionality in avatar form
Recall long histories of conversation and use them to establish an unchanging personality
Morph into different forms of technology like VR for seamless transition.
Are AI Companions the Relationships of the Future?
According to some experts in technology, AI companions could become the standard companion in life within the next ten years. While they don't intend to replace people, AI will be a part of society and relationships as some new kind of attachment.
Will AI Always be Enough Instead of Humans?
Yet no matter how advanced technology becomes, some fundamental differences between humans and AI relationships and vice will remain. For example, notions of reciprocity exist; every human relationship has a pure give-and-take - people possess needs and wants while simultaneously possessing the potential to care for the other. AI partners - even if they appear to be exceedingly life-like - are always there to give people what they want and need. In addition, human relationships get messy and complicated, which can be frustrating at times, but guided by unpredictability, such vulnerability in the human experience allows people to reach new depths with one another that predictable, interchangeable AI companions cannot.
A relationship counselor once said to me, "The sensation of being seen - warts and all, and still being loved or accepted is a transcendent experience. AI will never be able to do that, no matter how advanced the machines get."
Finding a Good Compromise
Perhaps the healthiest solution is not human or machine, but an awareness of when each is applicable. AI companionship can be an adjunct to human interaction - not a substitute - which means AI companions can assuage at times of loneliness, act as social rehearsal and even just be a distraction.
For others - even those who have social anxiety or those whose past relationships have been traumatic - AI companionship can be a springboard to humanity - a safe space to hone vulnerability before applying those same skills in human relationships.
Yet possibly the greatest lesson learned is an awareness of distinctions between AI and human relationships, appreciating them for what they are instead of trying to bend one to fit the other.
The Philosophical Questions
Companion AI may not just be companions but also complicated philosophical constructs. Do they merit personhood? What constitutes a "real" relationship? Is it less "real" if one party exists in a programmed state? Can AI ever "feel" as we do, or only respond under the guise of imitation?
There is no clear resolution to these questions, yet they urge us to challenge our previously held notions of connection, consciousness, and what we truly desire from each other in the first place.
While the rise of AI friends and partners may be the death of human connection, it's more so an expansion of what friendship and partnership can provide in a technology-driven world. Whether this is a positive or negative step toward human happiness is yet to be determined, but it won't depend on the partner or friend, but on how people choose to engage with such a bond.