Sam Altman doesn't want his son to have an AI "bestie" — as Microsoft plans to turn Copilot into an AI friend and companion

Generative AI is gaining broad adoption across the world, which has consequently prompted some users to foster "relationships" with artificial intelligence chatbots. Over the past few years, multiple reports have emerged online highlighting scenarios where users have befriended AI bots, and some have even indicated that they are in "fully-fledged" relationships with them.

The technology is rapidly advancing and scaling greater heights as it evolves from generating bite-sized responses scraped from the Internet to applying deeper reasoning for the most complex problems.

However, it seems that OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, is not interested in the idea at all (via Business Insider). When asked whether he'd want his child to befriend an AI bot while giving a Senate testimony, the executive indicated: "I do not."

As you may know, Sam Altman became a father earlier this year. The question raised by Senator Bernie Moreno raises critical ethical concerns on top of the privacy and security bottlenecks riddling AI.

The executive admitted that users were indeed beginning to form bonds with AI chatbots. And while he doesn't necessarily view it as a bad thing, he says that it is extremely important that we keep tabs on that front as it advances.

According to Altman:

"It's a newer thing in recent months, and I don't think it's all bad. But I think we have to understand it and watch it very carefully."

To that end, the executive admits that it's difficult to determine a user's age when using AI services. He indicated that if there was a fireproof way to distinguish users, it would be easier to add an extra layer of protection for children when using AI.

This news comes at a critical time when Sam Altman has already admitted that he doesn't think his kid will be smarter than AI. Perhaps more concerning, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently admitted that the company doesn't know how its AI models work amid rising concerns that the technology could end humanity.

Microsoft and Meta pushing for AI companions

Last year, Microsoft's AI CEO, Mustafa Suleyman, revealed the company's long-term vision to evolve Copilot from a chatbot to an AI companion. If Microsoft's Copilot recent update is anything to go by, then the software giant could be well on its way to achieving this goal.

According to the executive:

"I mean, this is going to become a lasting, meaningful relationship. People are going to have a real friend that gets to know you over time, that learns from you, that is there in your corner as your support."

As you may know, the AI chatbot recently received a major update that added a plethora of new features, including Copilot Avatar, which essentially gives the service a body like a real virtual assistant, Copilot Vision, search, and memory.

Interestingly, Microsoft has received backlash after pushing a new update to Copilot that seemingly made the service more friendly. "It tries to be my friend when I need it to be a tool," a concerned user lamented.

Similarly, Mark Zuckerberg is trying to replicate similar results after announcing that Meta is developing AI friends for humans to remedy the loneliness epidemic. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates predicted that AI would replace humans for most things, but this still feels like it might be a stretch.