AI Chatbots Are Now Being Used To Flirt On Dating Apps

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If you find that you’re lacking game in the online dating department, then you may be in luck. A recent Vice article uncovers a new way to wordsmith your way into a woman’s heart, and it’s the use of third-party AI chatbot software called Cupidbot that can be used in line with dating apps like Tinder. Though designed to give users a more competitive edge in the world of dating apps, we wonder about the ethical ramifications of using a chatbot for dating.

According to Vice, straight white males are having the most difficulties in getting women to swipe right, and a group of rogue ex-Tinder employees have designed Cupidbot to help level the playing field. In other words, AI is making online dating a lot less organic by removing a natural first impression from the equation. The creators of Cupidbot, who desire to remain anonymous, think that this will ultimately help men secure more dates through the use of their ingenious invention.

The way Cupidbot works is pretty simple: AI will be used through the back end of a dating app and match users with potential dates based on past matches they’ve had on the app. From there, the chatbot will speak on the user’s behalf to secure a phone number and, ultimately, a date. While the creators have gone on record stating how a potential date’s phone number is obtained is inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, they do encourage users to be honest about their use of a chatbot once a rapport is built.

Artificial intelligence used to flirt in Ex Machina

This begs the question: if an organic first impression is beyond a man’s reach, is it really fair for them to stack the deck and manipulate the system to get a phone number? The creators of the AI chatbot software feel like this is a necessary step that needs to be taken by some men who wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to secure a date. They blame Tinder’s inherent need for repeated use to turn a profit on men’s disadvantage on the online app. After all, if a man meets his wife-to-be on Tinder, then they no longer have a use for Tinder, do they?

While the app intends to level the playing field for men, it’s easy to see how using AI chatbots in dating apps would be considered extremely off-putting to women, similar to finding out a book was written by artificial intelligence and not a human. If a woman gives her phone number to a man she hits it off with on an app like Tinder, only to find out that the initial conversation was a lie, then a new layer of justified paranoia will manifest. Think of all the women who may be tricked into accepting a date with a man who couldn’t even have an honest first impression.

While some men may think they have an unfair advantage, the short-term advantage of using AI chatbots on dating apps may not be worth it in the long run. Nobody likes being manipulated, especially by a potential partner, so the tradeoff seems a bit risky. If this technology becomes ubiquitous, it won’t be long before women stop using dating apps entirely in favor of a more honest approach to dating.

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