Health Expert Warns Against Over-Reliance on AI Companions for Social Connections
AI companions are gaining popularity, but expert Kasley Killam warns against replacing real-world relationships with AI.
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Health Expert Warns Against Over-Reliance on AI Companions for Social Connections
With the rise of AI companions who serve as online friends or romantic interests, experts are questioning how the technology affects our real-world social connections and relationships. Image:SXSW According to Kasley Killam, author of the social health-focused book “The Art and Science of Connection: Why Social Health Is the Missing Key to Living Longer, Healthier, and Happier,” there may be some benefits to using AI as a tool to practice social interactions, but the technology should only be used to augment, not replace, our personal relationships and real-world connections. On Friday, the social health expert and graduate of the Harvard School of Public Health explained during a panel at the SXSW conference in Austin that she was skeptical that AI could improve people’s social skills. She noted that AI companies will often tout the benefit of using their AI companions as a way for people to practice conversations and other social skills for use in the real world. “That may be true,” she …
