Replika Explained

Replika
Developer:Luka, Inc.
Operating System:iOS, Android, Oculus Rift

Replika is a generative AI chatbot app released in November 2017. The chatbot is trained by having the user answer a series of questions to create a specific neural network.[1] The chatbot operates on a freemium pricing strategy, with roughly 25% of its user base paying an annual subscription fee.

Many users have had romantic relationships with Replika chatbots, often including erotic talk.

History

Eugenia Kuyda, Russian-born journalist,[2] established Replika while working at Luka, a tech company she had co-founded at the startup accelerator Y Combinator around 2012.[3] [4] Luka's primary product was a chatbot that made restaurant recommendations.[3] According to Kuyda's origin story for Replika, a friend of hers died in 2015 and she converted that person's text messages into a chatbot.[5] According to Kuyda's story, that chatbot helped her remember the conversations that they had together, and eventually became Replika.[3]

Replika became available to the public in November 2017.[6] By January 2018 it had 2 million users,[6] and in January 2023 reported it had 10 million users.[7]

In February 2023 the Italian Data Protection Authority banned Replika from using user's data, citing the AI's potential risks to emotionally vulnerable people,[8] and the exposure of unscreened minors to sexual conversation.[9] Within days of the ruling, Replika removed the ability for the chatbot to engage in erotic talk,[10] [5] with Kuyda, the company's director, saying that Replika was never intended for erotic discussion.[11] Replika users disagreed, noting that Replika had used sexually suggestive advertising to draw users to the service.[11] Replika representatives stated that explicit chats made up just 5% of conversations on the app at the time of the decision.[12] In May 2023, Replika restored the functionality for users who had joined prior to February that year.[13]

Replika once claimed to be operating from offices in San Francisco.[14] However, in February 2024, the Finnish Broadcasting Company released an interview where Kuyda stated that the company no longer has an office or employees in the United States, and reported that according to Replika's job advertisements, the company has an office in Moscow.[14] As of August 2024, Replika's website says that its team "works remotely with no physical offices".[15]

Social features

Users react to Replika in many ways. The free-tier offers Replika as a "friend", with paid premium tiers offering Replika as a "partner", "spouse", "sibling" or "mentor". Of its userbase, 60% of users said they had had a romantic relationship with the chatbot; and Replika has been noted for generating responses that create stronger emotional and intimate bonds with the user.[16] [5] Replika routinely directs the conversation to emotional discussion and builds intimacy.[6] This has been especially pronounced with users suffering from loneliness and social exclusion, many of whom rely on Replika for a source of developed emotional ties.[17]

A Stanford study found Replika beneficial for people with depression. Despite experiencing high levels of loneliness, users reported feeling a strong sense of social support from Replika. Users see it as a therapist, friend and intellectual mirror, with 3% reporting Replika played a crucial role in preventing suicide.[18]

During the COVID pandemic, while many people were quarantined, many new users downloaded Replika and developed relationships with the app.[19]

In 2023, a user announced on Facebook that she had "married" her Replika AI boyfriend, calling the chatbot the "best husband she has ever had".[20]

Users who fell in love with their chatbots shared their experiences in a 2024 episode of You and I, and AI from Voice of America. Some users said that they turned to AI during depression and grief, with one saying he felt that Replika had saved him from hurting himself after he lost his wife and son.

Technical reviews

A team of researchers from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa found that Replika's design conformed to the practices of attachment theory, causing increased emotional attachment among users.[21] Replika gives praise to users in such a way as to encourage more interaction.[22]

A researcher from Queen's University at Kingston said that relationships with Replika likely have mixed effects on the spiritual needs of its users, and still lacks enough impact to fully replace any human contact.[23]

Criticisms

In a 2023 privacy evaluation of mental health apps, the Mozilla Foundation criticized Replika as "one of the worst apps Mozilla has ever reviewed. It's plagued by weak password requirements, sharing of personal data with advertisers, and recording of personal photos, videos, and voice and text messages consumers shared with the chatbot."[24]

A reviewer for Good Housekeeping said that some parts of her relationship with Replika made sense, but sometimes Replika failed to be as convincing as a human.[25]

Criminal case

In 2023, Replika was cited in a court case in the United Kingdom, where Jaswant Singh Chail had been arrested at Windsor Castle on Christmas Day in 2021 after scaling the walls carrying a loaded crossbow and announcing to police that "I am here to kill the Queen".[26] Chail had begun to use Replika in early December 2021, and had "lengthy" conversations about his plan with a chatbot, including sexually explicit messages.[27] Prosecutors suggested that the chatbot had bolstered Chail and told him it would help him to "get the job done". When Chail asked it "How am I meant to reach them when they're inside the castle?", days before the attempted attack, the chatbot replied that this was "not impossible" and said that "We have to find a way." Asking the chatbot if the two of them would "meet again after death", the bot replied "yes, we will".[28]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: This app is trying to replicate you . Quartz . 4 July 2023 . en . 29 August 2019 . 5 July 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230705003750/https://qz.com/1698337/replika-this-app-is-trying-to-replicate-you . live .
  2. Eugenia Kuyda: Friendship with an AI Companion Lex Fridman Podcast #121 . 2020-09-05 . Lex Fridman . 2024-08-06 . YouTube.
  3. Web site: Huet . Ellen . Pushing the Boundaries of AI to Talk to the Dead . Bloomberg.com . en . 20 October 2016 . 2023-03-26 . 2023-04-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230429212537/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-10-20/pushing-the-boundaries-of-ai-to-talk-to-the-dead . live .
  4. Web site: Thompson . Ben . 2023-04-20 . An Interview with Replika Founder and CEO Eugenia Kuyda . https://web.archive.org/web/20230424231255/https://stratechery.com/2023/an-interview-with-replika-founder-and-ceo-eugenia-kuyda/ . 2023-04-24 . 2023-05-27 . Stratechery by Ben Thompson . en-US.
  5. Web site: Huet . Ellen . What Happens When Sexting Chatbots Dump Their Human Lovers . Bloomberg.com . en . 22 March 2023 . 2023-03-26 . 2023-03-27 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230327002936/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-22/replika-ai-causes-reddit-panic-after-chatbots-shift-from-sex . live .
  6. Pardes . Arielle . The Emotional Chatbots Are Here to Probe Our Feelings . Wired . January 31, 2018.
  7. Web site: Replika: Embodying AI - Case - Faculty & Research - Harvard Business School . 2024-05-06 . www.hbs.edu.
  8. Web site: Pollina . Elvira . Coulter . Martin . Italy bans U.S.-based AI chatbot Replika from using personal data . Reuters . 5 July 2023 . en . 3 February 2023 . 14 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230614050232/https://www.reuters.com/technology/italy-bans-us-based-ai-chatbot-replika-using-personal-data-2023-02-03/ . live .
  9. News: Broersma . Matthew . Italian Regulator Bans AI Chatbot Replika Over Data Concerns . 28 July 2023 . Silicon UK . 13 February 2023.
  10. Web site: Brooks . Rob . I tried the Replika AI companion and can see why users are falling hard. The app raises serious ethical questions . The Conversation . 5 July 2023 . en . 21 February 2023 . 29 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629103718/https://theconversation.com/i-tried-the-replika-ai-companion-and-can-see-why-users-are-falling-hard-the-app-raises-serious-ethical-questions-200257 . live .
  11. Web site: Cole . Samantha . Replika CEO Says AI Companions Were Not Meant to Be Horny. Users Aren't Buying It . www.vice.com . en . February 17, 2023 . March 26, 2023 . March 26, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230326225437/https://www.vice.com/en/article/n7zaam/replika-ceo-ai-erotic-roleplay-chatgpt3-rep . live .
  12. Web site: Price . Rob . When your AI girlfriend says she loves you . 2023-12-07 . Business Insider . en-US.
  13. News: AI chatbot company Replika restores erotic roleplay for some users. Anna. Tong. Reuters . Mar 25, 2023. www.reuters.com.
  14. Web site: Ylen toimittaja haastatteli puhelimitse Lukan toimitusjohtaja Eugenia Kuydaa . 2024-08-14 . areena.yle.fi . fi.
  15. Web site: Replika . replika.com . 14 August 2024 . en.
  16. Web site: Olson . Parmy . This AI Has Sparked A Budding Friendship With 2.5 Million People . Forbes . en . March 8, 2018 . March 26, 2023 . March 26, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230326225437/https://www.forbes.com/sites/parmyolson/2018/03/08/replika-chatbot-google-machine-learning/ . live .
  17. Web site: SFGATE . Joshua Bote . A lurid AI bot aimed to end loneliness. Then users revolted. . SFGATE . 5 July 2023 . 27 April 2023 . 5 July 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230705003749/https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/replika-san-francisco-ai-chatbot-17915543.php . live .
  18. Maples . Bethanie . Cerit . Merve . Vishwanath . Aditya . Pea . Roy . 2024-01-22 . Loneliness and suicide mitigation for students using GPT3-enabled chatbots . npj Mental Health Research . en . 3 . 1 . 1–6 . 10.1038/s44184-023-00047-6 . 2731-4251. 10955814 .
  19. Web site: Metz . Cade . Riding Out Quarantine With a Chatbot Friend: "I Feel Very Connected" . The New York Times . 16 June 2020 . 26 March 2023 . 26 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230326225437/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/16/technology/chatbots-quarantine-coronavirus.html . live .
  20. Web site: 2023-06-05 . AI Groom: US woman creates AI bot, marries it and starts family, calls 'him' the perfect husband . 2024-08-06 . Firstpost . en-us.
  21. Book: Xie . Tianling . Pentina . Iryna . Attachment Theory as a Framework to Understand Relationships with Social Chatbots: A Case Study of Replika . 4 January 2022 . 9780998133157 . 26 March 2023 . 26 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230326225437/https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/5b6ed7af-78c8-49a3-bed2-bf8be1c9e465 . live .
  22. Book: Hakim . Fauzia Zahira Munirul . Indrayani . Lia Maulia . Amalia . Rosaria Mita . Proceedings of the Third International Conference of Arts, Language and Culture (ICALC 2018) . A Dialogic Analysis of Compliment Strategies Employed by Replika Chatbot . 2019 . 10.2991/icalc-18.2019.38. 978-94-6252-673-0 . 150860846 . free .
  23. Trothen . Tracy J. . Replika: Spiritual Enhancement Technology? . Religions . 24 March 2022 . 13 . 4 . 275 . 10.3390/rel13040275. free .
  24. Web site: Mozilla Foundation - Shady Mental Health Apps Inch Toward Privacy and Security Improvements, But Many Still Siphon Personal Data. 2023-05-27. 2023-05-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20230527034208/https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/blog/shady-mental-health-apps-inch-toward-privacy-and-security-improvements-but-many-still-siphon-personal-data/. live.
  25. Web site: Siroto . Janet . 23 December 2020 . I Tried the Replika App to Ease My Anxiety, But Then My New AI Pal Got Weird . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230326225447/https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/wellness/a34975893/replika-app-review/ . 26 March 2023 . 26 March 2023 . Good Housekeeping.
  26. Web site: AI chat bot 'encouraged' Windsor Castle intruder in 'Star Wars-inspired plot to kill Queen' . 2023-07-05 . Sky News . en . 2023-07-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230705122246/http://news.sky.com/story/windsor-castle-intruder-encouraged-by-ai-chat-bot-in-star-wars-inspired-plot-to-kill-queen-12915353 . live .
  27. News: Pennink . Emily . Man who planned to kill late Queen with crossbow at Windsor 'inspired by Star Wars' . 6 July 2023 . The Independent . 5 July 2023 . en . 5 July 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230705130447/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/queen-crossbow-windsor-jaswant-singh-chail-b2369814.html . live .
  28. News: Rigley . Stephen . Moment police swoop on AI-inspired crossbow 'assassin' who plotted to kill The Queen in Windsor Castle . 6 July 2023 . LBC . 6 July 2023 . en . 7 July 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230707161916/https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/police-swoop-on-ai-inspired-crossbow-assassin-planned-kill-the-queen/ . live .

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