[bigstrat2003]

Providing an AI "companion" to those who are lonely is kind of like selling drugs to addicts. Yes, it's what they are seeking, and yes, they are suffering. But what you're giving them causes them to suffer more, not less, and it's evil to profit by giving people something that is harming them even if they ask for it.

[pixel_popping]

How exactly do you think it is harming them? (not teenagers and so-on), curious of your take. Sometimes treatments are useful even if you can't get out of it. AI companions will never disappear, that's sure, so it's not like giving something temporarily and then removing it.

I don't really use any form of AI as companion, but I do use it for introspection, I wouldn't say it's harmful, I think it depends on the depth of it.

[bigstrat2003]

I think that computers can't be a meaningful companion, because they aren't actually sentient. They can't truly sympathize with you, nudge you to grow when needed, and so on. Moreover, I think that treating a machine as a friend (or a lover) is going to stunt one's ability to connect with actual humans.

It's kind of like (though not exactly the same as) guys who watch crazy amounts of porn and jerk off all the time. Those guys have reported that when they are with a real woman, they sometimes can't even get hard (because a real person can't match the stimulation of the artificial thing designed to be as stimulating as possible), or can't have an orgasm (because a vagina isn't as tight as the grip they use when jerking it). In those cases, the outlet those guys were using to fill that need has ruined their ability to enjoy the healthier alternative. I believe that AI "companionship" is going to prove to have a similar effect.

[scotty79]

Harm reduction programs where you give addicts narcotics safely have an amazing track record

[celdon25]

You’re right, we should kick them while they are down instead, starving them of all “companionship” (otherwise, how could we uphold our current values as a society)? We need to keep producing a regular supply of [redacted] to rally people against in order to maintain the illusion of morale.

[bigstrat2003]

I didn't say that, any more than I said we should round up all drug addicts and shoot them. What I am saying is that giving a struggling person something which soothes his pain in the short term, while worsening his problem over the long term, is not compassionate treatment. It is preying on the less fortunate, and we should not tolerate it as a society.