Will AI Be Part Of The Future Of Sex Dolls?

The year 2023 has been the year of artificial intelligence, and whilst the capabilities of generative AI have been more limited than initial early speculation claimed, there are plenty of people wondering whether it could be used to help efforts to create companions.

The bodies of sex dolls are incredibly lifelike, and many owners have a close connection to their dolls. 

This has led manufacturers and futurists alike to speculate about whether it would be possible to combine that AI-generated communication and potentially even lifelike movement to create an even closer relationship.

There has been a lot of speculation about the concept of sex robots for years, particularly given the rise of AI companion chatbots such as Replika, as well as developments in robotics allowing for the creation of automata that can create authentic facial expressions, speak, blink and breathe.

Whilst one can never say never when it comes to technological advances, it seems unlikely that a sexbot with all of these advances together will be possible, at least in a way that is convincingly lifelike enough.

Voice recognition is functional when used in a smart speaker but less likely to be able to maintain a conversation, AI chatbots have a tendency to provide some truly strange answers at times, and whilst ambulatory robots do exist, they do not resemble lifelike humans at present.

The concern is that it is far worse for a sex robot to get close to lifelike but not quite manage that authenticity, as it causes the automata to fall deep into the uncanny valley.

Since the rise of authentic feeling and looking sex dolls, the uncanny valley has not been an issue, but if they started to move, there would be far more of a concern.

This combined with the significant cost considerations means that it is unlikely for AI to be a major part of the sex doll world outside of potential integration with a companion app or chatbot to allow it to keep a conversation.