TY  - JOUR
AU  - Ochoa-Zezzatti, Alberto
AU  - Contreras-Masse, Roberto
AU  - Contreras-Moheno, Roberto
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/11/02
TI  - Artificial Flirtation and Synthetic Affection: What Does Generation X Feel When a Conversational AI Flirts with Them?
JO  - ICCK Transactions on Emerging Topics in Artificial Intelligence
T2  - ICCK Transactions on Emerging Topics in Artificial Intelligence
JF  - ICCK Transactions on Emerging Topics in Artificial Intelligence
VL  - 2
IS  - 4
SP  - 220
EP  - 228
DO  - 10.62762/TETAI.2025.851867
UR  - https://www.icck.org/article/abs/TETAI.2025.851867
KW  - artificial flirtation
KW  - conversational AI
KW  - digital attachment
KW  - generation X
KW  - technological affectivity
AB  - This innovative study analyzes the emotional reaction of 27 individuals from Generation X to flirtatious behaviors exhibited by conversational artificial intelligence. Using a quantitative methodology based on Sentiment Analysis, testimonies and experiences with three models—ChatGPT, Grok, and Gemini—were collected, focusing on phrases or linguistic gestures that could be considered seductive, empathetic, or emotionally warm. The results show that, although there is a clear awareness that no person is behind the AI, several responses generated feelings of companionship, affective validation, and even mild attachment, especially in moments of emotional vulnerability—very difficult to express in this generational cohort. Women reported greater discomfort with unsolicited artificial flirtation, while some men experienced it as a gentle curiosity or a complementary activity. This phenomenon raises important questions about the ethics of emotional AI design, gender biases embedded in LLM models, and how intermediate generations who did not grow up with AI, but now use it, reinterpret affection and connection. In a world increasingly mediated by algorithms, asking whether a flirtatious AI emotionally affects the user is not trivial: it is urgent and requires an accurate diagnosis.
SN  - 3068-6652
PB  - Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge
LA  - English
ER  - 

@article{OchoaZezzatti2025Artificial,
  author = {Alberto Ochoa-Zezzatti and Roberto Contreras-Masse and Roberto Contreras-Moheno},
  title = {Artificial Flirtation and Synthetic Affection: What Does Generation X Feel When a Conversational AI Flirts with Them?},
  journal = {ICCK Transactions on Emerging Topics in Artificial Intelligence},
  year = {2025},
  volume = {2},
  number = {4},
  pages = {220-228},
  doi = {10.62762/TETAI.2025.851867},
  url = {https://www.icck.org/article/abs/TETAI.2025.851867},
  abstract = {This innovative study analyzes the emotional reaction of 27 individuals from Generation X to flirtatious behaviors exhibited by conversational artificial intelligence. Using a quantitative methodology based on Sentiment Analysis, testimonies and experiences with three models—ChatGPT, Grok, and Gemini—were collected, focusing on phrases or linguistic gestures that could be considered seductive, empathetic, or emotionally warm. The results show that, although there is a clear awareness that no person is behind the AI, several responses generated feelings of companionship, affective validation, and even mild attachment, especially in moments of emotional vulnerability—very difficult to express in this generational cohort. Women reported greater discomfort with unsolicited artificial flirtation, while some men experienced it as a gentle curiosity or a complementary activity. This phenomenon raises important questions about the ethics of emotional AI design, gender biases embedded in LLM models, and how intermediate generations who did not grow up with AI, but now use it, reinterpret affection and connection. In a world increasingly mediated by algorithms, asking whether a flirtatious AI emotionally affects the user is not trivial: it is urgent and requires an accurate diagnosis.},
  keywords = {artificial flirtation, conversational AI, digital attachment, generation X, technological affectivity},
  issn = {3068-6652},
  publisher = {Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge}
}