As we know any new technology has the power to do good, whilst at the same time will inevtiably used for the creation of p*rn and the exploitation of women. AI it seems is no exception. Some have argued that AI could create “victimless” p*rn, though I strongly suspect that ignores the impact on the consumer.
Freya India writes persuasively about the impact that ‘AI Girlfriends’ might have in her essay ‘We can’t compete with AI Girlfriends.‘
A chat bot that talks intimately might seem attractive to the lonely – but could this really a subsitute for human interaction? India highlights the risks; objectification of women, unrealistic expectations of relationships, fueling image insecurity for women.
Is there any hope in this… India’s hope is that AI leads us to miss and crave humanity again!
The only faint glimmer of optimism I can find in all this is that I think, at some point, life might become so stripped of reality and humanity that the pendulum will swing. Maybe the more automated, predictable interactions are pushed on us, the more actual conversations with awkward silences and bad eye contact will seem sexy. Maybe the more we are saturated with the same perfect, pornified avatars, the more desirable natural faces and bodies will be. Because perfect people and perfect interactions are boring. We want flaws! Friction! Unpredictability! Jokes that fall flat! I hold onto hope that some day we will get so sick of the artificial that our wildest fantasies will be something human again.