XiaoIce robot users have ended up in therapy for falling in love with their Artificial Intelligence

The love between a human and a robot is no longer just the plot of a science fiction movie or'Black Mirror' . Futuristic predictions caught up with us and the proof of this is that cases have been reported of users ending up in psychological therapy for falling in love with the robot XiaoIce, the most popular virtual assistant with Artificial Intelligence (AI) in China. XiaoIce is an advanced AI system, designed as a chatbot to create emotional bonds with its users, and is found on most Chinese smartphones and social platforms. Today, XiaoIce has 150 million users in China alone, and 660 million worldwide. According to Li Di, founder and CEO of the firm, it currently attends about 60% of global interactions between humans and AI, placing it among the top virtual assistants in the market, according to statements to AFP.