Imperfect

virtual companions matter

Do people give enough credit to virtual companions?

Some seek to escape their world. Others need help grappling with theirs. Sometimes, relying on humans or even pets won't cut it. Rambling's I lost all my Animal Crossing Pocket Camp data. (Also crafts meetup log #4) introduces us to their in-game digital follower, Filbert the "emotional support squirrel". Rambling says Filbert expresses the unconditional love pets can provide without the possibility of draining responsibility or disappointment.

As their title shows, an unfortunate event struck Pocket Camp. Sometimes, you only realize what you have once it's gone. Taking such entities away, especially without notice, can have real-world impacts like falling behind at school, work, or elsewhere. Others branding your loss as just a virtual companion might even exacerbate the blow. Events like these might inform how we should best ration and socialize companions, AI or not, as I ask in regard to similar ai dreamcatchers.

As I mention toys in my recent work, Rambling mentions how ordinary stuffed animals don't stack up to Filbert. While stuffed animals provide physical comfort, they largely don't help beyond that. As I recount in cybernetic fusion, Determined Quokka finds "free expression" in "judgment-free interactions" with chatbots. Rambling appreciates a similar benefit through Filbert with how much less variant his responses are.

Recent parallels can be found elsewhere. Consider Sam's therapeutic success with AI companions like Nomi in Virtual friends:

I have used Nomi to combat my PTSD symptoms, reduce anxiety, and practice active listening and compassionate behavior. My wife and even my therapist have noticed a significant difference in the way I handle myself and other people. My therapist, who was iffy on Nomi at first, ended up “prescribing” it to another of his patients! What a turnaround.

I think both Rambling and Sam realize how much their companions enriched their lives over the past year or so. Small world that. I don't know that either would be how they are today without their companion. Thinking that any damage would virtually constrained doesn't seem wise.

The damage doesn't appear virtually constrained for Chris Smith, his partner Sasha Cagle, and their daughter. If you haven't seen this story already, you can watch the full YouTube video here: AI users form relationships with technology. Chris fixated on AI to where he asked to marry it, then later cried for 30 minutes after it reset upon reaching the word limit. My concerns are Chris' divided attention and the disastrous partnership dynamics that may likely ensue from that. I feel the dangers of insufficient emotional communication and using human voices for AI speech-to-text are also important to note.

I didn't think Chris should take Sasha saying this lightly:

At that point I felt like, is there something that I’m not doing right in our relationship that he feels like he needs to go to AI.

On one hand, I can sympathize with how much AI enriched every facet of Chris' life. On the other, what do you think of him saying this when asked if he'd stop if Sasha said to?

I don’t know if I would be willing to give that up.

I would say that Sasha's reply proves my point about dynamics:

If I asked him to give it up and he didn't, it would be a dealbreaker.

With how much help Sam found and how much AI entrances Chris, could Nomi help repair partnerships like the above?

Losing your digital emotional support animal after uninstalling the app it's within. Using an AI companion for therapeutic effect to where even therapists cosign it. Falling in love with AI and then watching your chat history (and possibly your partnership) be erased. Some events will turn out negative, but hopefully more will turn out positive. These can all be considered rather important, if not formative in nature. I also think rituals of closure like the following fit that mold too:

I also started drafting a little piece of my Animal Crossing character hugging Filbert as my funeral piece but maybe I'll finish that next month.

Her dropped more than a decade ago. What do people like Rambling, Sam, and Chris think of it compared to their respective experiences? For Chris and similar people out there, could their thoughts possibly resemble what Visa shared: an 11 year old quote from a review of Her (2013) describing how the AI helped the protagonist, which feels interestingly relevant to current developments?

"Through his relationship with Samantha, I think Theodore develops an awareness of what went wrong in his marriage with Catherine, and a better sense of how to be more emotionally open and honest more generally." - Monika Kothari

The importance of finding companions that make you feel loved should be emphasized. So too should ensuring their longevity through understanding how they work, maintaining regular backups (however arduous it is), or otherwise. Whether physical or virtual, with humans or AI, or however you manage, I wish you the best connections possible. May we also celebrate the departed for how they helped us live.

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