- Study found that 40% of men said they’d buy a sex robot now or within 5 years
- The researchers surveyed 263 heterosexual men between ages 18 and 67
- But, experts have warned they could cause humans to over-exert themselves
Nearly half of men could see themselves buying a sex robot in the near future.
But, if they aren’t careful, the tireless robots could push their human lovers over the edge.
The findings come from two key presentations at the Love and Sex with Robots conference in London, and suggest robots will become an increasingly popular companion in the bedroom, warranting a system of ethics for their development and use.
In one study, presented today at the conference at Goldsmiths, University of London, the researchers surveyed 263 heterosexual males between the ages of 18 and 67.
Participants were shown two-minute videos of female humanoid robots.
The team also conducted ‘personality measures’ and ‘attractiveness ratings.’
Then, the men were asked whether they would buy such a robot for themselves now or within the next five years.
The study revealed a staggering number of men admitted they would buy a sex robot, with 40.3 percent of participants responding in this way.
‘I wanted to see what kind of characteristics influence the use of sex robots,’ Jessica Szczuka from the University of Duisburg-Essen said at the conference, the Mirror reports.
‘We react towards computers and machines as we do with human beings. This involves showing empathy and keeping an interpersonal distance with robots.’
The researchers also noted that lonely men were more likely to attribute human characteristics to robots.
By turning to sex-bots, however, humans may over-exert themselves to the point of collapse, researchers warned at the conference.
Oliver Bendel, a researcher from the University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Northwestern Switzerland, says development of sex robots should be subjected to questions of machine ethics, the Register reports.
Bendel warned that there are ‘physical limits’ to human sexuality – especially for men.
As robots have the potential to carry on without tiring out, this could put users at risk of over-exertion.
‘If the machine over-exerts the human, it reduces the possibility of human sex,’ Bendel said.
Another question included whether robots should be able to ‘entice’ users, according to the Register.
And in extreme circumstances, the expert wonders whether robots should be able to refuse, and if they should be compelled to reveal they are robots.
There are also concerns on the possibility of proliferation, as these robots would be able to collect data on their partners.
Such threats have already begun to surface.
Earlier this year, a woman sued sex toy firm We Vibe, claiming the company was keeping tabs on intimate data collected by the smart dildo and its corresponding app.
In recent months, experts have increasingly warned that internet-connected sex toys are vulnerable to hackers.
