Romancing the Robot: Is AI on the Verge of Making Human Intimacy Optional? - DZone AI

When the movie Her was released back in 2013, the concept of love between a human and a virtual entity was one that many people, myself included, had never really given much thought to. But as we watched the relationship blossom between Theodore, a recently-divorced writer struggling with loneliness, and Samantha, his charismatic and surprisingly empathetic operating system assistant, many of us began to wonder: Could this ever be possible? Fast-forward to today and this question isn't as far-fetched as it once may have seemed, thanks largely to the efforts of London-based software firm Spirit AI. While they have made a name for themselves using artificial intelligence to keep cyberbullying in check, they have also used this same technology to bring us 50 steps closer to the world of Her with Character Engine. Designed for videogame developers who understand the power of character to drive a story, Character Engine is an authoring tool and SDK that uses natural language processing and machine learning to create virtual personas who not only seem humanlike, but also process their environments in remarkably human ways.