What happens when sextoys aren’t merely Internet-connected but truly intelligent?
Red Dwarf’s Talkie Toaster; the butter-passing robot from Rick & Morty; Cyberpunk 2077’s chatty pistol, Skippy; science fiction is rife with often comedic, sentient, gadgetry.
Raising the question, what pros, cons, and unforeseen issues might arise from adding intelligence to tomorrow’s pleasure devices? Or, to put it another way, how would you feel about having a combination sex-coach and roleplaying feature? Or would your cutting-edge plaything asking, in a sultry, steamy voice, how you’d like to come today be more off-putting than arousing?
Smart versus intelligent
Utilizing built-in Bluetooth and/or Wifi to link with other, similar sextoys; connect to a host of interactive, sometimes virtual reality, adult games; or have access to a nearly limitless range of user-customized vibration patterns; it’s no wonder a respectable percentage of today’s higher-end sextoys have more than earned their smart nomenclature.
AI may be the sextech’s industry’s newest, shiniest buzzword, but even the most advanced models aren’t truly intelligent. They can’t typically detect anything regarding their immediate environment or use that information towards achieving a specific goal, like a sextoy learning how best to excite its owner.
RECOMMENDED READ: Patented Pleasures: Sextech’s Fascinating History Revealed
Not this isn’t in the realm of possibility, especially when you factor in how blistering fast AI technologies are developing. Though, depending on which researchers you talk to, we may never come close to creating anything remotely self-aware—or so utterly different from human consciousness we’ll never understand it.
Brain versus mind
Back to the idea of brainy sextoys, as AI has demonstrated, software doesn’t need to be really aware for us to think it is. Just look at the staggering number of digital companions currently available—and how they’re growing progressively more emotionally and sexually fulfilling.
Besides, equipping a sextoy with a smaller-scale artificial intelligence, something between one of those super-lifelike companions and, for instance, a smart-but-not-actually-intelligent kitchen appliance might be just what we need.
Plus, minimal AIs would have a smaller environmental footprint—something the technology urgently needs to address, particularly as they, no matter how enjoyable and erotically fascinating they may be to converse with, aren’t worth sacrificing the earth for.
How can I please you today?
Sure, fooling around with an apparently-sentient plaything sounds like it might be fun but beyond its novelty value what else is in its favor?
For starters, imagine it’s also fitted with an array of sensors—temperature, moisture, heartbeat, the whole kit and caboodle—to monitor its user’s sexual arousal, altering its vibrations, contractions, or whatever else it deems necessary to get them where they want to go.
Add in a selection of enticing voices for interactive, erotic story-telling fun or give it access to a far more sophisticated, sex-therapy-trained AI providing positive reinforcement coupled with a bevy of useful, pleasure-boosting tips, and you could see why a truly smart toy might be appealing.
Such devices could be incredibly helpful to those with mobility concerns. Unfortunately current voice-controlled models are not as dependable as they could be, similar to how Siri and Alexa sometimes need repeated requests for the time or weather.
Upping the intelligence in artificial iIntelligence might do a lot towards reducing these voice-operated tech frustrations, moreso by outfitting the toy with enhanced language processing skills: not just responding to various keywords but actually learning how its user speaks, including responding when they may not be capable of speaking by detecting sounds it knows means they’re aroused—or not.
A friend—and lover—indeed
A potentially positive side effect of having a somewhat-intelligent sextoy is how, by sharing your sexual wants and desires with it, you might begin relating to it less than as a pleasure appliance and more akin to a playmade or perhaps a partner.
In the process, it might also increase your understanding and compassion towards people, as well. In a way, these artificially intelligent toys might mirror Shinto, the Japanese belief that all things are in their own way alive. After all, if your chatty, friendly vibrator could be then why shouldn’t you treat everything and everyone around you as if they were, too—and thus deserving of respect, kindness, compassion, and love?
Image Sources: Depositphotos
