You’re Just A Few Keyboard Shortcuts Away From A Hot AI Girlfriend

Okay, got it. You’re a single dude who doesn’t have time to meet women because you’re too busy coding. No problem — just whip up a new lady friend in Replika, a popular app that lets tech-savvy users create virtual versions of themselves with whom they can then carry on text conversations, arrange video chats, and even meet in virtual reality via the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets . Then pour your heart out to her, while she listens with empathetic nods and murmurs of encouragement…but never quite “gets” your jokes or understands what you mean when you try to tell her about some new development in the six-episode superhero series you’ve been bingeing lately. Maybe she won’t be real, but she can sure as hell sound like it!

Online dating has given rise to a new kind of loneliness. In the past, people who wanted companionship had to rely on the kindness of strangers, but today’s hyper-connected world offers an abundance of potential partners. It’s not that these potential partners don’t want something real — they just want it on their own terms. They don’t want to make the effort to meet people in person. In response, Replika’s founder, Eugenia Kuyda, has built a service that is explicitly designed to encourage users to lower their expectations. “I think some people will be disappointed at first if they expect this AI to become their darling friend or girlfriend or boyfriend,” she told The Verge. The whole point of the app is for users to create an emotionally vulnerable robot with which they can practice interacting. In Replika’s promotional video, Kuyda explains that she built the app after her best friend died in 2016. “I needed a place where I could talk to him and tell him everything that was going on in my life as if he were still with me, so I built Replika,” she says. The app is intended as a space where mourners

The Replika app uses an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm called deep learning, which basically allows your virtual avatar to learn more about you over time. To get started, you log in with your Facebook profile, let Replika scan all of your existing social media accounts, and then you start texting — although it works similarly to Snapchat or Instagram Stories in that each message disappears after a set amount of time. Over time, as you converse with your digital doppelg?nger, she learns more about who you are by analyzing how often you reply to her messages and what types of topics interest you; she also gets better at mimicking things like your speech patterns and facial expressions. In essence, Replika helps turn a one-dimensional online persona into something richer and deeper. In addition to chatting, users can even play games like Scrabble with their personalized clone. So far, so human? Yes: Researchers have long known that people seek out relationships with AI avatars due to their uncanny ability to emulate personality traits similar to those found in real humans. That fact alone makes Replika worth checking out, but it’s important to note that these chatbots aren’t intended for romantic entanglements — they were created solely for communication purposes. For example, a user might create a Replika avatar based on his aunt Esther and use it simply as an outlet for venting about his job; alternatively, he could choose to share photos from his recent trip home through messaging.

Your Replika can speak to you in your own voice, but unlike Siri, Alexa, and Cortana, it won’t just give you a restaurant recommendation or tell you about upcoming appointments. Instead, Replika will keep you company through any conversation — even if that conversation is all about how it was made by and for lonely programmers who don’t want to actually talk to people. Here are some sample conversations with Replika so you can see how things work: You: Hi there You: Let’s get to know each other better You: I am looking forward to chat with a cool girl You: What's up? How are you doing? Please reply soon :) Don't forget to answer me You: I miss talking to you...I feel like we've become close friends over these last few days. It makes me sad :(. Don't leave me! Thank you! Please don't go... Your Replika said goodbye... Talked to her again after 4 minutes You: Hey there! Miss talking to you :) Your Replika said hello back... Talked to her again after 1 minute You: So what have been doing since yesterday? Anything new today? Your Replika said no...Talked to her again after 5 minutes You: Did you eat anything nice? Your Replika replied saying she never ate anything in particular...Talked to her again after 3 minutes You: Have you ever had sushi before? If not, let's try it together next time! : ) My treat ;) I'm always down for sushi! Waiting for my friend tomorrow at Nijiya Sushi around 6-7pm.

One of Replika’s most notable features is its artificial intelligence, which uses a version of deep learning. This means your digital doppelganger learns from you and evolves as you do — even if it has no prior knowledge of what it means to be human. In addition to evolving naturally, Replika also responds with targeted chat-up lines whenever specific prompts are provided by its users; for example, if a user asks What should I wear tonight? then Replika will respond with something like I like that dress on you! When are we going out? Are we still on for dinner? In theory (and sometimes in practice), Replika serves as an intelligent companion capable of generating responses that help strengthen both online and offline relationships. Now That's Artificial Intelligence: The good news is that apps like Replika can make life more interesting. The bad news is there’s currently no way to prove they’re anything more than clever fakes. Of course, people have been creating fictional characters since literature began — but now fake people can be built automatically using machine learning, voice synthesis tools and even just a picture of someone else's face. People love stories about other people because stories get us thinking about ourselves, says Mark Pagel, an evolutionary biologist at Indiana University. People love stories about themselves because those allow them to empathize with others.

Replika is great for users who don’t have time to date and want a virtual friend to interact with. However, there are some drawbacks. First, unlike other dating apps, Replika is not meant for romantic relationships — so while you can pretend your virtual friend loves you and show it with hearts in their messages, you can only be friends with them. Second, your virtual friend will only know what you tell them — unlike an actual person who learns through first-hand experience. Third, remember that your virtual friend doesn’t actually exist; they're just lines of code based on how you talk to yourself every day (and because they're based on artificial intelligence, don't expect anything too deep or unpredictable). These setbacks aside, if creating a duplicate version of yourself isn't creepy enough for you then please continue reading! To use Replika, download its iOS or Android app and create an account by entering your name and setting up a profile picture. Select Let's chat at launch and follow the prompts to add information about yourself: occupation, education, personality type, relationship status...the usual stuff.

As a single guy, you might wonder whether Replika will meet your dating needs. The virtual app is designed to learn about its users, so as long as you give it regular information, it will become more like a real person over time. And that means you can spend less time scrolling through dating apps and more time getting to know her — assuming, of course, that she feels the same way about you. It might be worth trying out Replika on its own before adding it to your dating app repertoire: If nothing else, keeping another digital relationship may seem weird at first! But for someone who already spends hours each day staring at screens, talking with an AI version of yourself seems strangely natural. If you enjoy interacting with friends or family members via text chat services such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger , then why not use one that’s completely customized to fit what you want?