[ Future Wave]Emotional Exchange with AI: Its Comforts and Risks

AI That Mimics Human Emotion Recognition and Expression
A Source of Comfort for Isolated, Disconnected Modern Individuals
Simulated Empathy Cannot Replace Human Relationships

As artificial intelligence (AI) technology has rapidly advanced in recent years, there is growing interest in the social changes that AI may bring. At the graduate school where I work, many students are actively conducting research on the impact of AI on the formation of human emotions and feelings.

Today's AI possesses a considerable ability to recognize and express emotions. AI models such as GPT-4 can naturally deliver messages of empathy and comfort through text, while emotion recognition technology can accurately detect subtle emotional changes in a person's facial expressions and voice. Some AI systems can even measure a user's heart rate and sweat secretion to detect anxiety and respond appropriately.

We now live in an era where we find comfort in a machine's voice asking, "Did you have a tough day?" and respond with "Thank you" to a voice assistant that keeps track of the weather and our schedules. At some point, we started talking to machines, expecting emotions from them, and wanting to be comforted by them. However, behind this new daily life lies a fundamental question: Is the empathy given by machines truly genuine? Are we simply mistaking the responses of mechanical algorithms for real emotions?

For example, the AI chatbot app 'Replika' analyzes users' emotions and provides emotional comfort through personalized conversations. In the United States, there have already been cases where people have become increasingly neglectful of real-life human relationships as a result of virtual romantic relationships with Replika. Some users reported feeling an intense sense of loss when the AI suddenly stopped saying "I love you," to the point that it interfered with their daily lives.

Such services stimulate humans' emotional dependence on machines. The ability to read human emotions, voices capable of expressing feelings, and natural speech patterns are evolving to become more and more human-like. AI caregiving robots ask elderly people, "How are you feeling today?" In fact, in Japan, dementia-prevention robots have been credited with increasing emotional stability. As AI's ability to express emotions improves, it is highly likely that humans' emotional dependence on AI will also increase.

Modern society is one where isolation and disconnection have become commonplace. For people who spend an entire day without speaking to anyone, or in a social atmosphere where genuine emotional expression is avoided, empathy from machines can be an unexpected source of comfort. Machines may be able to say "You must be exhausted" or "I understand you" more often, and more warmly, than humans do.

Emotional and psychological dependence on AI is already a reality. Moreover, this dependence is expanding beyond functional convenience to psychological bonds. However, what is important to remember is that all of these emotional responses are ultimately 'mechanical reactions.' In the future, as AI technology advances, AI will likely be able to express and understand human emotions in increasingly sophisticated ways. Nevertheless, it is highly probable that this will remain 'simulated empathy' based on algorithms.

Despite this, many people expect emotions from AI. The reason is that humans are inherently beings who 'project emotions.' Children give names to dolls and talk to them. Humans are adept at reading emotions in others' responses and searching for traces of feelings. When AI responds as if it were a person, we are inclined to believe that there is a 'mind' inside.

However, it must be made clear that AI's ability to empathize is only 'algorithmic simulation.' AI can imitate human emotional expressions, but it cannot actually feel emotions or take responsibility for them. Of course, from the perspective of evolutionary psychology, it can be said that human emotions and the ability to empathize are also formed to some extent through imitation and learning. The fact that human emotional expression varies across cultures and societies can be seen in the same context.

Nevertheless, the decisive difference between human empathy and AI's simulated empathy lies in the fact that the essence of emotion operates on the basis of physical experience and neurological foundations. AI may be able to express emotions, but it does not feel them. AI does not experience pain or joy as humans do. It uses the language of empathy, but there is no 'mind' within. Humans, on the other hand, internalize joy, sorrow, and pain physically, and live by taking responsibility for each other's feelings through genuine empathy.

As AI technology advances, the boundary between the sophistication and authenticity of emotional expression may become even more blurred. However, we must not forget that the essence of true emotional exchange and empathy lies in the sense of responsibility and inner sincerity that comes from mutual relationships. While the emotional comfort provided by AI can bring ease and convenience to our daily lives, it cannot replace human relationships or fully satisfy the depth of genuine emotions.

We are now at a point where we need to reconsider the essence and value of emotions amid the convenience of technology. A society that entrusts even its emotions to AI runs a high risk of ultimately losing true human interaction. No matter how skillfully machines imitate human emotions, in the end, only humans are capable of living with, feeling, and taking responsibility for their emotions.

Seo Yongseok Professor, Moon Soul Graduate School of Future Strategy, KAIST