(Not my post - I found this on reddit and thought it was a different and intriguing point of view : https://www.reddit.com/r/aiwars/comments/1iniuih/ai_boyfriendsgirlfriends_are_empowering/ )
Have you ever heard the saying “I’m a strong independent woman who doesn’t need a man”? Well I think the same about people who are dating AI. They don’t need a person of the opposite gender (or the same gender, if they’re homosexual) to satisfy their romantic desires. That makes them strong and independent. They don’t rely on others. They solved a problem in their life all by themselves. This is why I think that dating an AI is empowering.
Note that I phrased this as gender-neutral (except the quote) - both men and women are empowered by dating an AI.
(In a comment by the OP, they clarified that they’re talking about locally run, open source AI bf/gfs)
They aren’t real. They are as empowering as looking into a mirror each morning and saying aloud, “I don’t need any [wo]man. I’m a strong, independent [wo]man.”
Because that’s basically what they’re doing in different words. That said, some people do that so who am I to say they don’t find it empowering?