Sexbots and other artificial lovers might arouse discomfort, but their continued advances could have unexpected upsides
psyche.co
An excerpt:
VR could also offer near-infinite variety. Your VR lover could present as a middle-aged Danish woman one day and as a young Tongan man the next. More than that, they could potentially take on any expression of gender, anatomy and personality you might imagine. That includes defying the usual laws of physical anatomy. Why be constrained to two arms, or only one penis or one vulva?
I evoke such possibilities not just because they are titillating: the creation of interactive, responsive, shape-shifting characters, able to both appear in a sexual scene and to have ongoing relationship-like interactions with users, could present unprecedented opportunities for sexual and romantic self-discovery. People whose circumstances prevent them from discovering or expressing their gender or sexuality could, in VR, have chances to experiment and learn about themselves in relative safety. These users are people for whom ‘better than nothing’ really matters.
VR sex could potentially even rewrite what we think we know about human preferences, challenging static ideas about gender, sexuality and having a ‘type’. Understanding of our gendered, sexual selves is currently somewhat constrained by the limited expressions of gender and sexuality that we tend to encounter in other people. VR might enable a golden age of self-discovery, allowing users to grapple with their own complexity and fluidity.