Empathic Computing

Cai, Yang

doi:10.1007/11825890_3

Cited by 19 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…XiaoIce is developed on an empathetic computing framework Cai [2006], Fung et al [2016] that enables the machine (social chatbot in our case) to recognize human feelings and states, understand user intents and respond to user needs dynamically. XiaoIce aims to pass a particular form of the Turing Test known as the time-sharing test, where machines and humans coexist in a companion system with a time-sharing schedule.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Design and Implementation of XiaoIce, an Empathetic Social Chatbot

Zhou

Gao

et al. 2020

Computational Linguistics

495

311

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This paper describes the development of Microsoft XiaoIce, the most popular social chatbot in the world. XiaoIce is uniquely designed as an AI companion with an emotional connection to satisfy the human need for communication, affection, and social belonging. We take into account both intelligent quotient (IQ) and emotional quotient (EQ) in system design, cast human-machine social chat as decision-making over Markov Decision Processes (MDPs), and optimize XiaoIce for long-term user engagement, measured in expected Conversation-turns Per Session (CPS). We detail the system architecture and key components including dialogue manager, core chat, skills, and an empathetic computing module. We show how XiaoIce dynamically recognizes human feelings and states, understands user intent, and responds to user needs throughout long conversations. Since the release in 2014, XiaoIce has communicated with over 660 million active users and succeeded in establishing long-term relationships with many of them. Analysis of large-scale online logs shows that XiaoIce has achieved an average CPS of 23, which is significantly higher than that of other chatbots and even human conversations.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Design and Implementation of XiaoIce, an Empathetic Social Chatbot

Zhou

Gao

et al. 2020

Computational Linguistics

495

311

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Xiaoice is built using empathetic computing [ 8 , 77 ]. This is a framework of computer operations that provides the appearance of empathy to a person.…”

Section: Social and Open-ended Chatbots: Identifying Empathy Vectorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Replika in the Metaverse: the moral problem with empathy in ‘It from Bit’

McStay

2022

AI Ethics

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This paper assesses claims of computational empathy in relation to existing social open-ended chatbots and intention that these chatbots will feature in emergent mixed reality contexts, recently given prominence due to interest in the Metaverse. Against the background of increasing loneliness within society and use of chatbots as a potential remedy for this, the paper considers two leading current social chatbots, Replika and Microsoft’s Xiaoice, their technical underpinnings, empathetic claims and properties that have scope to scale into the Metaverse (if it coheres). Finding scope for human benefit from social chatbots, the paper highlights problematic reliance on self-disclosure to sustain the existence of chatbots. The paper progresses to situate Microsoft’s empathetic computing framework in relation to philosophical ideas that inform Metaverse speculation and construction, including Wheeler’s ‘It from Bit’ thesis that all aspects of existence may be computed, Chalmers’ philosophical championing that virtual realities are genuine realities, Bostrom’s proposal and provocation that we might already be living in a simulation, and longtermist belief that future complex simulations need to be protected from decisions made today. Given claims for current and nascent social chatbots, belief in bit-based possible and projected futures, and industrial buy-in to these philosophies, this paper answers whether computational empathy is real or not. The paper finds when diverse accounts of empathy are accounted for, whilst something is irrevocably lost in an ‘It from Bit’ account of empathy, the missing components are not accuracy or even human commonality of experience, but the moral dimension of empathy.

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“…This work of art is just the tip of an iceberg where AIs are designed for flirting, seducing, and having relationships with the users in China. A famous example of an AI used to flirt with the users through an "empathetic computing" framework (Fung et al, 2016;Cai, 2006) is XiaoIce (or XiaoBing [小冰] "Little Ice" in Chinese), which was launched in 2014. 9 This AI is a chatbot developed by XiaoIce Company which formally was a side project of Microsoft's Cortona chatbot, and it became its own company in 2020 due to its incredible success (Speed, 2020).…”

Section: Xiaoice [小冰] Love [爱 "àI"] and Art Exhibitions In Chinamentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Intimacy in China and Japan

Liberati

2022

Hum Stud

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This paper aims to show a possible path to address the introduction of intimate digital technologies through a phenomenological and postphenomenological perspective in relation to Japanese and Chinese contexts. Digital technologies are becoming intimate, and, in Japan and China, there are already many advanced digital technologies that provide digital companions for love relationships. Phenomenology has extensive research on how love relationships and intimacy shape the subjects. At the same time, postphenomenology provides a sound framework on how technologies shape the values and meanings we have. Thus, this paper introduces two digital technologies in Japan and China (Love Plus and XiaoIce chatbot), and it analyses according to the elements proposed by phenomenology and postphenomenology. In conclusion, this paper shows how digital companions like Love Plus and XiaoIce chatbot change who we are and the values and meanings we have according to the phenomenological and postphenomenological framework. These entities might not be human, but they shape who we are as human beings and the meanings and value we give to love.

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Empathic Computing

Cited by 19 publications

References 46 publications

The Design and Implementation of XiaoIce, an Empathetic Social Chatbot

The Design and Implementation of XiaoIce, an Empathetic Social Chatbot

Replika in the Metaverse: the moral problem with empathy in ‘It from Bit’

Digital Intimacy in China and Japan

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