AI Can Also Become a Love Coach
Mr. Wang, a 32-year-old man, has been single since birth and recently met someone he likes in the workplace. He wants to take the next step, but he lacks dating experience and desperately needs guidance. However, his friends are either carefree players or already married with children, leaving no time to listen to Mr. Wang’s relationship troubles. In a helpless situation, Mr. Wang decides to try a new method: seeking advice from AI.
That’s right, AI is not only a good assistant at work, but now it can also guide humans on “how to make friends.” An AI dating assistant app called “RIZZ.AI” has recently gained popularity among Chinese users. According to Decrypt, RIZZ.AI simulates dating environments, allowing users to practice their communication skills and reduce the risk of saying the wrong things or causing awkward moments in real-life dates.
After trying it out, the Decrypt reporter stated that RIZZ.AI presents real-world dating pressure through timed interactions, forcing users to think quickly and respond. For example, when the AI asks the user, “How was your day?” and the user responds with, “Hmm, it was okay, just like any other day, hmm… (while thinking about the next topic to chat about),” the AI quickly responds with, “Okay, it seems like you’re not good with words… how awkward.” It’s quite a blow to the user.
However, the Decrypt reporter mentioned that after multiple interactions, RIZZ.AI’s evaluation system detects the context and provides suggestions. For example, if the user is too reserved during interactions with the AI, it will suggest being more direct. And when the user becomes bolder in subsequent interactions, the AI will provide encouragement.
The strict training of RIZZ.AI is not without reason. After all, the official website states, “Speaking is like a muscle, so should we train it like we train our muscles?”
Further reading:
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AI dating coaches are popular among China’s younger generation.
There are increasing numbers of AI dating coach programs on the market, such as Meeno, which provides relationship advice, Simulated Date Coach trained with GPT models, and many other apps with “RIZZ” in their names. (Rizz is short for “charisma,” representing someone’s attractiveness or charm, a popular term among Generation Z.)
You may be wondering if there really are people who need this kind of app. According to a survey by AI dating tool AttractionTruth, 20% of heterosexual men worldwide have started using AI to enhance their online dating experiences. Additionally, a report from dating website OkCupid shows that users who have a positive view of ChatGPT have seen an almost 40% increase in the number of matches compared to users who are skeptical of the technology because they can make better use of AI to improve the interaction and matching process.
In fact, according to recent reports from the South China Morning Post, socially awkward and long-term single Chinese young people are actively using AI dating coaches to improve their dating skills. A report from the China Youth Daily Social Survey Center in 2023 shows that young people generally lack social skills and find it difficult to make friends outside their comfort zones. Among over 2,000 single respondents in the survey, 60% said they had fewer than two close friends. Through apps like RIZZ.AI, nervous young people can interact with AI characters in virtual scenarios to learn how to deal with various dating situations.
As Business Insider explains, while Chinese society seeks the assistance of AI dating coaches, the country’s marriage and birth rates are declining rapidly. The marriage rate in China for the first three months of 2024 decreased by 8.2% compared to the same period last year. The government has also implemented policies such as providing cash incentives for childbirth and additional paid marriage leave in hopes of increasing marriage and birth rates.
AI brings new opportunities for the younger generation who are immersed in the digital world and lack social interaction skills. However, even though AI can enhance social skills and confidence, one must be careful of the unintended consequences of relying too heavily on it, which may limit users’ ability to gain real-life social experiences.
Sources:
Decrypt, Time, Business Insider