Café Inquiry (Online) – Artificial Intelligence Friendship and Romance

This event is held online. (Click the button to join the Zoom meeting.)

Is it possible to have an intimate friendship or relationship with an artificial intelligence partner? The answer is yes! A growing number of people are using a variety of available apps to do this, and many of them report developing serious and meaningful relationships. But some people are less enthusiastic. At the next Café Inquiry we will discuss what we know about these AI relationships, their uses, and their benefits and risks. If you’d like some background on the subject, here are a number of links to material. This article from The Conversation gives a nice overview of the topic and discusses some research findings. There are a number of videos discussing the experience of people who have had AI relationships, including this 22-minute video, this 3-minute video, and this 33-minute Voice of America video. This article and this Reuters article explore some of the negative aspects of AI relationships, as does this article (and this PDF of that same article). Join us ONLINE to discuss this fascinating topic!

Café Inquiry starts with a short introduction of the day’s topic, followed by casual discussion.

This event is free and open to the public. Donations appreciated, but not expected.

Attendees are able to future propose topics which would align with Michigan Humanist’s purpose: from atheism, agnosticism, humanism, secularism, and freethinking to broader subjects in science and humanities, such as religion, philosophy, social issues, politics, evolution, morality, ethics, and psychology.

Café Inquiry (Grand Rapids) meets each month IN PERSON on the second Sunday and ONLINE on the fourth Sunday.

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Michigan Humanists values the participation of all guests — requests for reasonable accommodation may be made by contacting the event host at least three days prior to the event.

Michigan Humanists expects all guests to engage in respectful discussion. Critiques on views and claims based on merit are allowed, but not attacks on individuals who hold other perspectives.

Any person engaging in disruptive behavior or harassment will be asked to leave, and may be banned from future events pending the severity of the action. Please speak to the event host or contact info@michiganhumanists.org if you feel these expectations are being violated.