Hello computer. Wanna talk dirty?

The Turing Test is a famous challenge to computer scientists to create an artificial intelligence machine that is so convincing people believe they are talking to a real human being.

Meanwhile, it is a truism in technology, that if anyone can make money out of new tech innovations, it’s the porn industry. You can probably already see where this is going, can’t you…

Welcome to Erotic Chatbots, the latest digital startup to crowdsource funding online. According to its press release, the new company plans to launch apps and interactive services “that conduct entertaining, interesting, erotically charged conversations with virtual lovers or friends”.

According to company president David Levy, anyone who finds it too tame to chat to the company’s  “flirty” style of chatbot can amuse themselves with their “adult” chatbots, “which can also help users to improve their own talk-dirty skills.”

It goes on: “An intelligent virtual lover which understands and wants to please you, is perhaps an appealing proposition to a lot of people.”

A lot of a certain type of people, no doubt.

Erotic Chatbots seems to hope it can appeal to the frustrated fantasies of anybody who, well, anybody who cannot or couldn’t be bothered to actually find an intelligent human partner. Or even a not-so intelligent human partner. Or just a human.

“Future plans for the company’s technology include the development of a personality, emotion and mood software module, which will allow users to choose and modify their partner’s or lover’s personality as they wish,” it says.

So, not at all creepy, then. Now, Downtime knows that none of its readers would be indulging in such a thing anyway, but in case you’re doing so purely in the name of scientific research in future, be warned. That perfect “lover” might not be quite the man or woman you believe. Besides, just think of the bugs you might find.