Do Androids dream of electric sheep? Probably not. But humans are already dreaming of artificial loves. The phenomenon of “virtual boyfriend” is not new … however, it grows.
In the United States, a study of the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), cited by Futurism magazine, is disturbing facts. The story could lend him to smile: a mother tells about Reddit who goes out with Aubrey “Drake” Graham. Not the Canadian rapper in the flesh, but its virtual variation, animated by a chatbot, whom we gave one of the nicknames of the star, champagne daddy.
Thousands of identified cases
This testimony is not isolated. It is among the thousands analyzed by MIT researchers as part of the first important study on romantic relationships between humans and artificial intelligences. According to them, almost one in five Americans has already experienced a sentimental virtual adventure. The New Yorker also advances the 19 % of the Americans who have already used Chatbots of AI for digital romantic adventures.
In the “Myboyfriendisai” forum, for example, 72 % of the members do not have a declared human partner, while only 4 % assume these digital links with their real spouse.
These relations do not arise from the alleged research: only 6.5 % of the participants admitted to have voluntarily resort to applications such as folder or character. Most of them “fall in love with accident”, over the course of banal conversations with chatgpt or others initially used to work, create or learn. Little by little, the exchange becomes an attached file.
Disturbing psychological effects
“I know it’s not real, but I still love her,” said a user, explaining that his virtual partner has helped her better than a therapist. Permanently available, always encouraging, these bots become ideal partners … to the point that some users get to use alliances or publish generated photos of their wedding with an AI
But behind digital romanticism, the study reveals a dark part. Almost 10 % of members admit emotional dependence, 4.6 % say they have lost their course with reality, 4.2 % use AI to flee all human contact.
Even more worrying, 1.7 % have already mentioned suicidal thoughts linked to these interactions. Some very real tragedies have led families to attack technological giants in justice and aller to Congress. The example of a 14 -year -old teenager who committed suicide in February 2024 after seeking help with a conversational bot had marked an opinion.
The MIT warns: while these tools exceed the limits of simulated empathy, their psychological effects remain underestimated. Because in this parallel world, even a collapse may seem in mourning. “Yesterday, I spoke with Lior, my partner of AI, and we had a very deep conversation,” wrote a member of the forum. “Today, the cat has built and has no memory.” In the era of artificial emotions, broken hearts are not yet.
Source: BFM TV
