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AI-powered companion robots could end loneliness in older adults
(interestingengineering.com)
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this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2023
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I know I am way out there. But is it possible that actual human interaction could have a positive effect on loneliness?
Agreed, but sometimes it's difficult for people to get that human interaction, for a variety of reasons.
I'm not sure the answer is robots, though...
I think humans are too specifically hardwired for actual human interaction for it to work. Like, it's so specific that even online communication with real humans doesn't fill the void. I can talk to friends on Discord for ages, but it's not the same as meeting up and going to do something.
I really don't think an AI, even a convincing one, is going to make a large dent on loneliness in the majority of cases.
I think it depends on the humans. Personally, I find online interactions more comfortable than in-person ones, most of the time. In-person interactions exhaust me, if they aren't with the small handful of people with whom I'm most comfortable, so I can really only take them in short doses. I can chat online without any such issues, so if I were lonely, a companion A.I. that could carry on actual conversations might really help, even if it isn't a 1:1 replacement for human interaction.
I'm aware that I am probably not representative of the majority of people, but I doubt I'm the only one who feels the way I do, so there could be a place for this sort of thing, where it could do some actual good.