Yes and it allows people such as myself, low income earners, disability, to not have to pay for an ambulance (or an annual membership) if needed. ❤️ I think it’s a pretty decent system especially compared to others.

Australia. A broken arm no fee. General check up - no fee.

Yep. Happened with bluesky. It was pretty decent and wasn’t getting any troll crap that was rampant on Twitter. Then there was some controversy on Twitter and Blue sky quickly went up in its new members and…yep, it just got all trolly and agro 🙄

Personally I just miss when we had individual sites for a topic like when I was a teenager. Grew up on forums for a certain artist and another different site for specific sports teams, books. Way less likely to get idiots if you actually have to actively find the specific website for an artist you hate.

Autistic.

I don’t have a special interest in trains. I do enjoy the movement of them and other transport though. The movement is calming to me.

I do collect playlists on my special interests. My biggest special interest at the moment is Ireland 🇮🇪 🍀🥰

Tbh, women wouldn’t admit to doing this either - there’s absolutely a shame around women having to make friends with an AI (because we’re meant to be innately social I guess). And I don’t think that other women realize that they are contributing to the issues of women feeling shame using AI by implying it’s a male issue and all about sex and toxic masculinity.

Like as a woman who has used AI, how am I supposed to feel about admitting that I’ve done something that only asshole, horny, incels do (according to a lot of people)?

So the stigma goes all ways and none of it helps anyone. People just need to be more curious than judgemental. Someone does something you don’t understand? That’s okay you don’t understand. Ask them why. Listen. Try to see a different perspective instead of just filling in the gaps with incel, men, sex, ugly, etc. etc.

And do people really believe that women don’t talk to AI companions, in various forms, too?

I’m a woman and I spoke to one of the apps for a while because I was bloody lonely (still am 🤷‍♀️). Had zero to do with men or murder. I didn’t have anyone, of either gender, to connect with.

It’s really easy to just reduce this to a male issue, a toxic masculinity, a male violence issue. We need to go deeper than that if we actually want to understand why people, men, women, everyone, use different AI.

But threads like this, with all the judgement, aren’t going to get a lot of people who admit they use/have used/have considered using AI. By just criticising/laughing, etc at people who do it, ironically, we turn more people towards the AIs.

I think you’re making some interesting observations. I definitely agree that it’s the easy answer to just dismiss people who use AI therapists, friends, relationships are just stupid.

You’re right that it says something about the system we live in and I extend that to society in general. We have a society who criticizes people for answering “how are you” honestly, who doesn’t have time for each other, who use terms like “trauma dumping” - so personally, I can see why some people are turning to machines whether it’s therapy or connection. It’s really bloody sad and it’s not a good solution but I can see the WHY behind it - which is what I think you’re also getting at.

We do need to listen to why people turn to these services and figure out what people aren’t finding in human connection that they are, or think they are, in machines. I don’t buy that an individuals intelligence has much to do with why people turn to AI.

❤️ autistic, ADHD adult. I cried watching the movie “I swear” last night about a boy through to man with Tourettes syndrome. It’s too relatable just how hard life can be why you’re different. I liked the message of the movie though which was that the disability isn’t the problem, it’s the lack of education for society that puts up the barriers. A lot of truth in that.

I hope your son finds people who he connects with without having to change who he is.

Agree with you here. It’s wild that asking for sources is seen as shutting a discussion down. It’s literally opening the discussion wider - unless the other side wants to take it as some kind of attack.

Yeah as a non American it’s kinda like okay is this fake or are you guys actually just not that great at shooting your targets 😅 c’mon, if these are real you gotta start questioning your nations eyesight or something 😂

The thing is people aren’t looking for reasons to believe it was faked, that’s the default with trump now. The question is what makes anyone think it’s real? He’s the one who coined fake news so can’t really blame anyone for not believing the “news” 😅

When you repeatedly lie and act like an AH about some pretty major stuff, why would you expect people to believe ANYTHING you claim? 🤷‍♀️ Be more of a surprise if the guy ever spoke for 3 minutes without a single lie at this point lol