Will an AI Companion steal your partner?

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A talk about why AI companions appeal to people and the human needs they are designed to meet.

AI summary · From the event listing

Why AI companions appeal to us, and the human needs they’re designed to meet. Event description AI companions are suddenly everywhere: chatbots that listen, flirt, reassure, remember, and sometimes seem to know us a little too well. They appear in our phones, our group chats, our late-night searches, and increasingly in the private corners of everyday life. But the desire to build machines that keep us company did not begin with today’s apps. With Skyler Wang, we’ll trace how we got here, from early experiments in conversational machines to the large language models and companion platforms shaping contemporary culture. Along the way, we’ll consider how these systems are designed to feel responsive, personal, and emotionally meaningful, even when we know full well that what lies on the other side of the screen is mostly code. This isn't a talk about whether people should or shouldn't engage with AI companions. It is an invitation to look more closely at what these technologies reveal about intimacy, loneliness, and consumerism, and the kinds of relationships we’re starting to let technology shape. Come for the chatbot lore. Stay for the slightly unsettling question of what we want from one another.

Parc-Laurier