Front Burner

Can you have a 'real' relationship with an AI?

Large language model tech like ChatGPT is leading to increasingly more convincing AI companions. What's going to happen as we let them further and further into our lives?
People stand around a robot and laughing as it cracks a joke, during an AI conference.
Federal Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne laughs at a joke from an AI robot as Helene Desmarais, executive chairwoman, of IVADO Labs looks on at the All In artificial intelligence conference Wednesday, September 27, 2023 in Montreal. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)

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OpenAI is showing off the latest version of its ChatGPT software in a new set of promotional videos, sounding almost human in the way it talks to users, inviting all sorts of sci-fi comparisons. But AI chatbots are already here, using large language models to simulate human speech, emotion — and even relationships.

As this technology goes increasingly mainstream, what will it mean for our "real life" relationships? Can you actually have a meaningful relationship with a computer program? And if you can… is that something you want to trust a tech company with? Philosophy instructor Jill Fellows tackles the big questions about the future of AI companions.

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