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Who's who in AIAI glossary

Replika

Launched in 2017, this virtual companion app lets millions of people maintain a friendly or romantic relationship with a customisable chatbot. It has become the emblem, and the real-world laboratory, of emotional bonds between humans and AI.

In other words

Its founder Eugenia Kuyda first digitally reconstructed a deceased friend from their text messages: this memorial chatbot, a precursor to griefbots, gave rise to Replika.

Alyriaz articles that mention it

  • China switches off millions of virtual friends: on 15 July, AI companions disappear · Society

    On 15 July 2026, an unprecedented Chinese law comes into force, forcing ByteDance and Alibaba to shut down the emotional AI companions of Doubao and Qwen. Millions of users risk permanently losing agents built up over months. We break down this regulation, what it really targets, and the universal questions it raises.

  • Talking to the dead through AI: the industry that sparks debate · Society

    In August 2025, journalist Jim Acosta interviewed live on CNN the AI avatar of Joaquin Oliver, a victim of the 2018 Parkland shooting at the age of 17. His parents had given their permission. The avatar spoke with his verbal tics, his political opinions, his voice. Viewers were in shock. Welcome to the industry that is trying to rethink death.

  • Why are we starting to talk to AIs like they're friends? · Vision

    The phenomenon doesn't affect other people. It affects you, perhaps already without your having really noticed. You type a personal problem into a ChatGPT window and you really listen to the answer. You call it "asking an AI for advice". But it's something else. It's probably the deepest conversation many people will have had this week.

  • The hidden economy of AI: 50 million people are talking to a virtual companion · Society

    While everyone is talking about Sora, ChatGPT and Claude, a parallel $37 billion market has taken shape in the shadows: that of AI companions. 50 million active users, Valentine's Day 2026 as a defining cultural moment, and one nagging question: what does this explosion say about our times?

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