The Horny Truth About AI Chatbots

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To understand the internet, you have to assume that everyone has a constant, low-level amount of horniness. I do not make this observation in a crass or judgmental way, but if you’re wondering what technologies will take hold in the future, the first place you want to check is the adult entertainment industry. 

This is why a recent quote from an AI founder caught my eye. In an interview with Wired, Avi Schiffmann pitched his new startup Friend, which sells a Bluetooth-connected pendant that listens to your conversations—not only with Friend but with everyone you encounter. Most of the company’s marketing materials show the device building an emotional connection with the user. “No, I think you were vulnerable. There’s a difference,” Friend responded in one image. (I’ve been chatting with Schiffmann for the last year and will review a demo unit soon for Every.) 

Friend isn't specifically designed to be a sexual companion, but he knows some people will use it that way. “For sure there will be some people that try and fuck the USB-C port of this,” he told Wired. “I think I'm shameless enough to understand what I'm building.” It’s startling to read Schiffmann’s assumption—but it’s almost certainly accurate.

Pornographic chatbots are some of the most popular and profitable AI applications in use today. Mainstream chatbots such as ChatGPT and Claude won’t engage in sexual chatter, so a cottage industry has sprouted up to serve the good people of the internet.