Romance and matchmaking could get easier with a little help from our machine friends
Aleksandr Zhadan programmed ChatGPT to screen potential candidates on his behalf so that he didn't have to go through the tedious process of personally interacting with women. The AI LLM 'talked to' over 5,000 women on Tinder, based on Zhadan's filters and communication style to finally recommend one woman. And Zhadan went on to marry his AI-recommended match.
For most young people, finding love digitally isn't new. It has been around for a while with dating apps, online matrimony services and location-based virtual dating services. But users of such services have been experiencing fatigue from having to fix dates, meeting several strangers and being ghosted. So, having AI find the perfect match for a 'been-there-done-that' individual — and one that takes over the onerous task of communicating with, and screening, thousands of potential candidates — can be a real game changer for the digital native.
Little wonder then that Zhadan's viral post on X is likely to inspire many others to take the AI route to find love. Some of them may even take it to the next post-human level — feeling there is no need for matchmaking when AI can turn into the match, and talk and date like a real person. Why bother with a physical Valentine when you can have a virtual one? Spike Jonze's 2013 SF-rom 'Her', with the protagonist (Joaquin Phoenix) developing a relationship with an AI virtual assistant (Scarlett Johansson), puts this possibility in a fictional context.
Are these real and fictional developments harbingers of times to come?
