Artificial Intelligence and the Potential of Next-Generation Dating Apps

In the recent movie "Ex Machina," a young programmer falls in love with a robot. An artificial-intelligence mastermind had engineered his robot so that "she" appears to think, feel and love in a way that was uncannily human. He had also mined and analyzed the young man's online history deeply enough to create the woman of his dreams. Long before anybody actually meets the perfect robot mate, however, intelligent, "learning" machines capable of advanced data analytics will be ever more precise in matching one human to another--and in predicting the success of computer-assisted matchups, which will improve the odds that our real-world romantic relationships will last. Leaps in digital technology have already made drastic changes to 21st century romance.