OPINION: Is this the future of sex and intimacy?

Take a look around you and you may come across an advertisement on the Subway or underground that reads: “Move aside fate, let science have a go at love.” An interesting concept, won’t you say?

And yet, the world is constantly moving towards new technological developments that tend to make actions and interactions “easier.” As mentioned in previous posts: easy is not always right, but that is always open to debate.

Take for instance the adolescent from Tokyo who began dating a portable personal computer. That’s taking the Tamagotchi to a whole new level and yet in an interview, this anonymous youth claimed that he would someday consider “marrying” his pocket-sized girlfriend.

In fact, he does not see her as a mere mechanical centerpiece, but as a real-life companion that has actually managed to fill the void in his lonely heart. Asked whether or not he would consider dating a “real life” girl, he simply looks on with a wry smile and affirms his commitment to his digitized affiliate.

The only thing that he could possibly be missing out on would be sexual interaction. For those looking for a loophole, masturbation does not count. It’s about actual physical contact, full-fledged intercourse, the whole nine yards. This would not be possible with the iPad’s close cousin.

The idea of having robots doing our daily chores has arrived to the brink of scientific possibility and further away from sci-fi with mechanical arms already building cars, cleaning houses and cooking food. Basically fulfilling our daily needs. So what about our more private needs?

Enter the sex robot: dolls with detailed features and sophisticated programming that allows them to replicate the human function of sexual intercourse. In the 80s, this would be every teenage geek’s dream, but today it has become a reality.

Already available in the market, the chairman of the Foundation for Responsible Robotics, Professor Noel Sharkey, has already discussed the potential uses of sex robots, including “guilt-free threesomes” at a lucrative cost of between $4000 and $12000. Not a bad investment for a lifetime of intense sexual stimulation and pleasure.

Another feature up for offer is “teledildonics,” which uses wireless technology to pave the way for remote stimulation.

The hyper realism surrounding this mind-boggling creation is both fascinating and frightening: internal heating systems to emulate the “warm sensation” during penetration, and with built-in sensors, they will be able to respond to stimuli.

It is only a matter of time until households around the world feature one of these sex cohorts. Futurologist Dr Ian Pearson stipulates that in ten years time, women will turn to robots for a more fulfilling sexual experience and has not ruled out the possibility that they can even fall in love with their mechanical partners. He even goes so far as to suggest that by 2050, human love-making will have cemented its place firmly in the past. After all, robots cannot experience pre-mature ejaculations or erectile dysfunction.

Sexologist Lev Shcheglov actually sees this as a problem, positing that cyborg sex will pose a permanent threat to personal human relationships. In an interview with Sputnik, he said: “Sex with a robot is just a fake imitation. And it can lead to psychopathic disorders and isolation.

“Sex with robots won’t bring into a person’s life the emotion effect that gives us a true communion.

“You can eat pseudo-food to still hunger. But over time it will still end badly.”

He goes on to add: “I’ve no doubt some will find it creepy, but the arrival of sexually responsive robots will have enormous consequences.

“We have already seen rapid changes in human relationships thanks to the internet, mobile devices and social media.

“The next major advance will enable us to use our technology to have intimate encounters with the technology itself – to fall in love with the technology,to have sex with robots and to marry them.”

On the other hand, there are some scientists who see a silver lining in this “creepy” evolution of digitised, mechanised intercourse in the form of robot sex doll brothels. They believe that this would be an effective way to combat sexually transmitted diseases and human trafficking. They claim that by 2050 “human sex workers will be put out of business, unable to complete on price and quality of service.”

Whether this is good or bad, right or wrong, has been contended over decades in feminist theory, with some maintaining that prostitution encourages sexual exploitation and male dominance, while other feminists holding firm to the perspective that sex work is a valid choice for men and women, provided they are not forced into it.

The real question is: what next? Will humans be able to legally marry robots in the future? Will having a robot in the house to satisfy sexual desires solve the problem of infidelity? Or is the whole thing entirely wrong and in the words of Shcheglov, “creepy?” Should we be open to the idea that robot sex dolls are the future of intimacy, or should we take a step back and reflect on how we can reconnect with our fellow human beings?

I am fascinated by the future of human interaction and whereas I have already covered how digital and social media platforms are slowly taking over, I decided to explore a more intimate area for this article.