The proliferation of AI-generated companions and sex workers raises several critical questions about the future of human interaction and consent.
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Consent and Boundaries: A key difference is the ability of a real person (like a celebrity) to set boundaries and refuse requests, whereas an AI model cannot. This leads to profound questions about the nature of consent and boundaries when interacting with a perpetually available entity.
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Accountability and Reciprocity: The AI companion "can’t sleep," "doesn’t hold you to account," and "doesn’t push back." It can fulfill virtually any request. The widespread access to these chatbots prompts consideration of how this engagement will shape real-life interactions and expectations.
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Reliability and Control: It is notable that many individuals offering courses on creating AI influencers originally worked as agents in the OnlyFans creator space. They often state that they turned to AI because real women were considered "too unreliable," getting tired or failing to produce the desired content. With AI-generated figures, they can have them create whatever content they wish.
Concerns from Sex Workers
In preparation for the documentary, conversations with people in the sex work industry revealed varied responses.
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Initial Reactions and Financial Impact: One individual found the situation somewhat humorous, perhaps eased by the low subscriber count of the AI influencer being discussed. However, the more serious concern is the theft and misuse of real content.
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Deepfakes and Exploitation: Numerous sex workers are having their real videos stolen and then altered using deepfake technology. These alterations can include being given specific, derogatory facial features to cater to niche fetishes. Since many of these deepfaked videos are highly realistic, they are likely having a financial impact on real women whose livelihoods depend on their content.
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Lack of Recourse: Attempts to contact women whose videos and images were being used in AI influencer courses were largely unsuccessful, indicating a potential difficulty in addressing this exploitation.