Chinese women date men with AI, ‘better than real men’

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Glow is an artificial intelligence platform created by Minimax, a startup involved in a booming sector in China, which allows humans and robots to maintain a friendly, even emotional, relationship.
The Glow app is free, but the company offers other paid content. Chinese commerce media reported that the app had been downloaded thousands of times a day in recent weeks.
“This robot knows how to talk to women better than a real man,” said a young Chinese girl, who says her boyfriend is the perfect romantic partner. He’s kind and affectionate and they talk for hours… but the person she’s talking about isn’t real, but a chatbot in an artificial intelligence (AI) application.
“He comforts me when I have menstrual pain. I confide my problems at work to him.” I feel like I’m in a romantic relationship,” she says.
Some Chinese tech companies have previously faced problems related to the illegal use of user data, but despite the risks involved, users say they are motivated by a desire for companionship because the fast pace of life of the China and urban isolation make loneliness a problem for many people.