Jaqaur – Looking Outwards 08

Conditional Lover

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I chose to write about “Conditional Lover” because I thought it was absolutely charming. It’s a robot that uses data it gathers from the pictures on your phone to figure out what sort of facial features you would find attractive. Then, it uses its camera and “fingers” to use Tinder for you, deciding which users you would like and swiping left or right accordingly.

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I love this idea (as an art piece more than a practical tool), because it makes an objective, impersonal process out of dating, which should be very personal. However, when you think about it, Tinder has already done that, replacing meaningful connections with “Do I find him/her attractive at first glance?” If Tinder is going to take most of the humanity out of dating, why not just hand the whole thing over to a robot? This piece really made me think about our superficial culture surrounding relationships, if only for a little while, so I think it has succeeded not only as a work of technology, but as a work of art.

Conditional_Lover – A physical bot that automates your Tinder

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