Synthetic Friends

This book explores the notion of whether we can be friends with machines in a philosophically meaningful way. Depending on our concept of friendship, we may be inclined to answer differently. Since social technology has made new forms of friendships possible between people across the globe, the author argues that the philosophical concept of friendship, forged thousands of years ago, should be re-examined. The author proposes a new approach to the debate that reflects the unique relationship we can build with machines as our synthetic friends.

Explores the notion that we can be friends with machines in a philosophically meaningful way Argues in favor of those relationships potentially contributing to a good life Outlines features of these synthetic friends and the friendships we may have with them

Auteur
Hendrik Kempt is Research Associate at the Applied Ethics Group at RWTH Aachen, Germany. He was previously a visiting scholar at the University of Southern California and Brown University, USA. He is editor of RuPaul's Drag Race and Philosophy (2020) and author of "Chatbots and the Domestication of AI" (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020) as well as several articles on the topic of human-machine interaction.

Résumé
"Regardless of whether the reader is predisposed to accept or reject the idea of synthetic friends, reading this book is time well spent." (Anthony J. Duben, Computing Reviews, April 13, 2023)

Contenu
Chapter 1 Introduction.- Chapter 2 - Why even?.-Chapter 3 - Critical Perspectives.- Chapter 4 - Social Philosophy of Technology.- Chapter 5 - Concepts and Theories of Friendship.- Chapter 6 - Digital Hermits.- Chapter 7 - Synthetic Friends .- Chapter 8 - Social Integration.- Chapter 9 Criticism.- Chapter 10 - Almost a conclusion