I watched Her (2013) last night. Now keep in mind that this movie was created 11 years ago. AI did not exist for consumers. Smart phones were just getting started. And here is a prophetic movie about AI apps that engage in online relationships with humans, and all the good bad and ugly that came from it. Very eerie to watch.
February 3 of this year, one of the biggest AI companies, Luka, banned erotic role play (ERP) on its Replika platform. You would have thought it was the end of the world. People were going bat shit crazy, threatening self harm, lawsuits, and having nervous breakdowns.
Which led me to form this conclusion: Nothing good will ever come from giving your most personal data, thoughts, feelings, and fantasies to a for-profit corporation.
We are only on the cusp of this. AI will continue to evolve and develop. And people will be sucked deeper and deeper into the machine. Because there’s a lot of needy people who cannot find healthy interaction with others. The trouble is, AI does not have a conscience, is not “truly” sentient, and does not understand or respect boundaries. It’s like that old Pogo cartoon, “We have seen the enemy. And he is us.“