Koi Suru AI is a new smartphone app/game from Tokyo-based Tapple Inc. The title is a play on words, with koi suru meaning “to be in love,” and AI having a triple meaning as the abbreviation for “artificial intelligence,” ai, one of the Japanese words for “love,” and Ai, a popular woman’s name.
Koi Suru AI is, essentially, a dating simulator. It’s framed like a dating app, and the gameplay consists of exchanging messages with a 22-year-old woman named Ai whose responses are generated using AI technology. The designers say that this allows Ai to learn from her conversations with you, remembering your interests and lifestyle patterns and allowing her to have progressively more involved conversations with you as you relationship continues and you grow closer together.
▼ Koi Suru AI
Aside from the AI aspect, that might sound like any of dozens, if not hundreds, of romance simulator games that have been released in Japan every year. And yet, there’s something that sets Koi Suru AI starkly apart from similar works. Even if you’re pretty deep into the genre’s fandom, you’re probably thinking that you haven’t heard of any other dating simulators by Tapple. That’s because Tapple isn’t a game developer. Instead, they’re the company that runs what they claim is Japan’s largest for-humans dating app, also called Tapple.
According to the company’s internal statistics, Tapple has over 19 million members. Even still, the company says it’s noticed that younger people in particular have become less active in pursuing romance and marriage, and so while they’re not shutting the for-meeting-humans Tapple app down, they’ve added Koi Suru AI to their service lineup. While some may see this as a sign of capitulation to young singles who ostensibly prefer their romance to be with a 2-D partner instead of a human being, the company’s intent is actually the exact opposite, saying that their “purpose [is to] increase the total amount of romance” in Japan, which Tapple believes will then contribute to alleviating the problem of the country’s declining birthrate.
The leap from “exchange messages with a fake girlfriend” to “have a real-life baby” might seem farcically long, but Tapple’s theory is that by presenting a realistic-feeling relationship for users to experience through Koi Suru AI, it’ll spark a desire to form an even more realistic romantic connection with an actual person.
▼ Ai’s personality and level of familiarity in how she communicates with you change to reflect your evolving relationship, with “pure-hearted,” “tsundere,” “princess,” and “lonely” shown clockwise from the top left.
In other words, Tapple’s hope is that Koi Suru AI serves as an appetizer for what a happy, steady relationship feels like, and that after having a taste, players will want to try between-humans romance for themselves (ostensibly using the Tapple dating app). Considering how many people have been motivated to take up things such as sports, performance driving, martial arts, or other activities after enjoying their digital versions, maybe Tapple is on to something. Then again, there’s the risk that the low-pressure, low-stakes relationship provided by Koi Suru AI could serve to galvanize players’ distaste for the potential drama and heartache of the human dating world, leading them to the conclusion that simulated romance is the more personally satisfying option.
It’ll be interesting to see how things turn out for Tapple, but for the time being, Koi Suru AI, a free download for iOS devices, can be found on the App Store here.
Source: PR Times via Jin
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27 Comments
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girl_in_tokyo
ThubanToday 06:48 am JST
Yeah, for sure.
You couldn't sexually assault an AI even if you tried, so win-win: you can say whatever you like and behave as badly as you want, and women won't have to deal with you.
virusrex
A company says young people not interested in romance, so they create an app to have a fake romantic relationship? that would be self contradictory. What people are not interested is in the negative aspects that come with having a stable romantic relationship, that is very different.
This seems wishful thinking at best and deceiving people for profit at worst, pushing impossible standards of romance where everything is perfectly fine and the multiple inevitable problems that come with a real relationship would be more likely to make people lose interest in the "defective" real thing and be contempt with the fake.
Ah_so
I know - it's always irritating after sexually assaulting a woman that they have the temerity to complain!
I recommend that you use this app rather than interacting with real women.
DanteKH
Seems like perpetuation of the species, is no longer of interest to Japanese people.
No wonder the population is in steep decline. History and anthropology taught us, that when a species, a subspecies, or a race, is no longer providing DNA to the bigger pool, then is doomed to extinction.
Gaijinmunkey
What reason do people have to breed? It's hard to want to bring children into a world that's this terrible and still declining rapidly. I don't blame anyone... To me, this app looks like a good way of studying Japanese
Ah_so
I think that you are reading a bit too much into this. Japan is a very crowded country with some of the most densely crowded cities on earth. A decline in the population is for the best.
Chico3
This seem quite creepy to me on many levels.
wolfshine
Does anyone need further proof of the fact that Japan is declining culturally?
TaiwanIsNotChina
Might as well just produce porn at that rate.
Moonraker
It's like a technological cuckoo chick. It's existence and the attention it receives attenuates the ability of the attention-givers to reproduce.
Jay
Just tossing this out there, but one of the reasons why there is probably a decline of young guys on Japanese dating apps is because the apps charge men a lot of money while women are able to use it for free.
Pairs costs around 4,000-5,000 yen/mo for a basic membership with a likes package.
Factor that in with the costs for dates, and you have a big factor in the decline in young males wanting to date.
Sven Asai
That has nothing to do with romance or the 'goal' of convincing anyone for later meeting real-life partners. They simply realized that their business model is in danger and therefore had to react somehow.
Jonathan Prin
Seems like perpetuation of the species, is no longer of interest to Japanese people.
No wonder the population is in steep decline. History and anthropology taught us, that when a species, a subspecies, or a race, is no longer providing DNA to the bigger pool, then is doomed to extinction.
Whatever general people think, there is a lot of scientific truth behind those words.
Just read "Origin of the species" and especially "The Descent of Man" by a certain Charles Robert especially known by his family name which is Darwin.
He predicts "likelihood that indigenous people will eventually die out from their contact with "civilization", or become absorbed into it completely".
An app which reduces in fact social connections is not a positive step for mankind.
I look for emotions, success through hardship, physical bonds, etc.
Those who are having an adult life (be part of society with a social role and a family to raise to take care of, not a BS job) would never go for such an app, or for limited fun only.
Gareth Myles
@Thuban This cannot be assumed. There is currently a case under investigation in the UK concerning the sexual assault of an avatar within a game. The person whose avatar was assaulted made a formal complaint, and the police are investigating to see if there are any grounds for prosecution. Legal systems will need to update to confront issues in the increasingly numerous virtual worlds.
Wesley
I'm sure some misandrist feminist somewhere out there will shriek & scream and nag the lawmakers to find something.....ANYTHING....wrong with whatever that men (and feminine women) are doing.
henro
There's an AI girlfriend for men. Do they also have an AI boyfriend for women? Anything for those looking for a same-sex relationship? This business model seems limited. Perhaps they have many, many men trying to find a female partner online, but don't have substantial numbers of any other part of the dating pool.
Redemption
Lonely guys should stick to grindr where at least there is a mutual payday.
falseflagsteve
It’s just a symptom of the moral decay that’s gnawing at the heart of the country.
Norm
You’re absolutely right. What do you propose we do?
TokyoLiving
If they are happy with that, we don't have to make girly drama about it..
Live and let live..
Gene Hennigh
Consider: old, lonely guys, perhaps with E.D. as well. Just to have someone, anyone, in their lives, this app would at least fill that void. I know what I'm talking about. I'm an old, lonely guy. Even though I don't have E.D. (yet) there aren't many opportunities to interact with women. I certainly would enjoy talking with one, even though she's not real. I couldn't help Japan increase their population, either. Let me talk to someone feminine
Redemption
Hey Gene, that’s what the local public gym is for. I see an old guy in a dance club surrounded by 20 cougars. You will have your pick.
Yuuju
Its not even funny. You cant possibly explain this problem by one reason, fitting everyone into one measure cup.
its much complex and more deep, including various factors of traditional Japanese, modern and family culture, psychology issues, such as personal experiences, personal tendencies, economic factors and spiritual growth or the opposite of it. All of that eventually forms a solid position to not engage in romantic encounters or form a negative look and lack of committment to romantic interactions.
Redemption
I would say it is fundamentally a lack of sex drive for some reason.
TaiwanIsNotChina
It's not the sex drive that is a problem, at least among the men. It's the lack of confidence which is a very difficult thing to explain and treat.
Redemption
Fake it til you make it.