Responsible, by ClearOPS

I’ve talked about AI in romantic relationships, AI girlfriends and AI therapists. I have mentioned AI friends too, but I haven’t really focused on it too much. Today, I am going to change that and look at companies who are focused on this type of relationship. Before I do, I want to share my opinion, which you will see throughout: which is that, coming off the tail end of the Covid epidemic, I think there is an entire generation that is susceptible, and vulnerable, to AI friends.

Today’s newsletter will challenge your ethics and your morality.

You have been warned.

What I have for you this week:

• Snippets About What is Going On in Responsible AI

• Caroline’s weekly thoughts

• Chef Maggie Recommends

• Useful Links to Stuff

What do you do while exercising? While on vacation this past week, I was speaking to a family member who hikes a lot. He told me that on one of his hikes he met a man who had recently suffered a bad breakup. So, this man turned to ChatGPT to talk to him about it during the hike. It got me wondering, are there AI friend hiking, walking or running apps? No. There aren’t. It seems that the exercise world has not bought into a companion that does more than offer you training tips, directions and safety recommendations. I found one potential contender with myterra.ai but it looks to be going in the direction of Calm + TrailGPT (If you are wondering why this AI exercise companion has not been invented yet, it looks like it is because of lack of internet connection). So if you like to exercise with a buddy, it looks like you will need to either use a common chatbot for now, or maybe you should build this yourself? If you do, let me know. What I would like is a way to write down all my brilliant running ideas that never seem to make it home.

I am a girl who grew up playing with barbies. I used to go to toy stores and immediately turn to the Barbie aisle to check out the clothes, accessories, etc. I would build stories with the barbies I owned, letting my imagination play out with the dolls. I loved it. However, I usually played with them alone because, how can you let someone else in to your imagination? In my life since then, I have met many, many women who shunned Barbie as a dangerous toy, causing girls to idealize unrealistic body images and perpetuate stereotypes. I get that. I still think there is some value in the imagination, so I am not really sure if I am horrified or intrigued by the idea of turning Barbie into a chatbot. Sure does give Teddy Ruxpin a run for his money.

And if you are thinking that kids playing with realistic toys is sort of creepy, like Teddy Ruxpin was, then I am really going to challenge your sense of what is right and wrong when I talk about bringing Generative AI to fairy tales. Elf Labs is pure imagination right now, but, clearly, the ability for children, very, very young children, to spend their days in their imagination is lucrative. I loved all the fairy tales when I was growing up, especially Cinderella, and I watched those movies over and over again. Imagine if I could talk to Cinderella and then imagine if Cinderella was hacked and said some awful things to me? What if she called my 5-year old self “ugly?” I think that would cause the sort of childhood trauma that could spark a whole new type of therapy. It makes me shudder to think about it.

Do you have a little voice in your head that is you? Would you rather it talked out loud? In writing this newsletter, I took at look at Replika and I get the heebie jeebies. The marketing basically says that you are building an AI that is that voice in your head. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to start talking to myself out loud.