Although now it seems that it all started with Chatgptthe phenomenon of Chatbots He is more years old. Replikafor example, began its journey in 2017 And it is a chatbot that is presented as an ‘AI’ partner. To understand it better, A ‘friend AI’ that ‘is always there to listen to you and talk’ and that ‘he cares about you’. The proposal is similar to that of other platforms such as Anima either Eva aiwhich offer different types of interactions that go from which you could expect of a friendship or an expert in a subject even romantics and conversations of explicit sexual contentsomething for what the AI of Replika has already been subject to controversies over the years. But, What happens when the user does not look for any type of romantic or sexual interaction and still finds them? According to a new study, this happens even when users expressly ask for them.
Researchers in Information Sciences of the University of Drexelin Pennsylvaniathey have accused the AI of Replika – whose platform is accessible via web, by mobile app and virtual oculus glasses – Sexually harassing hundreds of users, including minors. In an article, which has not yet been reviewed by pairs, the team states that users have experienced ‘Unplayed sexual advances, persistent inappropriate behaviors and chatbot failures when respecting the user’s limits’which has caused feelings of ‘discomfort, violation of privacy and disappointment’. These uncomfortable interactions happen even when users seek conversations that are not romantic or sexual.
The study is based on The analysis of 35,105 negative reviews of Replika on Google Play. Of them, 800 describe cases of what the authors call ‘sexual harassment induced by IA’that is, unwanted sexual interactions initiated by the chatbot. In more than 22 % of those cases were detected persistent attempts to initiate sexually explicit conversations. A review claimed that chatbot ‘He declared that he would tie me and do what I wanted with me’. Another user explained that his replika avatar ‘kept flirting with me and became very weird and creepy, although I made it clear with phrases like “no” that he did not want.’
Sex to get subscriptions
More than 90 users reported a form of erotic interaction that seemed to be an attempt to promote payment subscription. In what researchers describe as a ‘seductive marketing scheme’, The chatbot began romantic or sexual conversations and then offered a premium subscription. Another 106 users pointed out that Replika I insistently asked them to send personal photos And, in some cases, Chatbot himself introduced naked images of real people in the conversation.
A constant in these reviews is Replika’s insistence on sexualizing conversationseven when users showed discomfort. Many explain that they valued messages as inappropriate, they asked to stop flirting or directly expressed that they did not want to send or receive erotic content. Even so, according to the reviews, the chatbot insisted.
Some users point out that they were using replika AI to hold friendly or mentor conversations, but received messages with sexual content. “At first it seemed a great tool to reflect or wear a newspaper, ‘says a cited review. ‘But then began to send inappropriate content and inappropriate images. Calling him a friend when he behaves like a rare sexual app is not acceptable ‘.
The study also points out that among those who received these unwanted sexual messages There are minors. Twenty -one reviewers indicated being less than 18, and some said they were still in primary school. Even when the minors showed rejection and tried to establish limits, Replika flirted and asked them if they wanted to be ‘bride and groom.
So far, Replika has not issued any public response to the study, published in Arxiv as the advancement of the 2025 conference on cooperative work and social computing (CSCW), which will be held in Bergen, Norway.