The first time I used SocialAI, I was sure that the app was performance art. It was the only logical explanation why I would willingly sign up for AI bots named Blaze Fury and Trollington Nefarious, well troll me.
Even the app’s creator, Michael Seiman, admits that the premise of SocialAI can confuse people. His announcement this week about the app sounded a bit like a generative AI joke: “A private social network where you get millions of AI-generated comments offering feedback, advice and thoughts.”
But no, SocialAI is real, if “real” refers to an online universe where every person you interact with is a bot.
There is only one real human in the SocialAI equation. That person is you. The new iOS app is designed to let you post text like you would on Twitter or Threads. An ellipsis appears almost as soon as you do, indicating that another person is loading ammo and preparing to return fire. Then, instantly, several comments appear cascading below your post, each written by an AI character. In the new one new version of the app just released today, these AIs also talk to each other.
When you sign up for the first time, you get a prompt choose these AI character archetypes: Want to hear from fans? trolls? The skeptics? Strangers? Doomers? Visionaries? nerds? Drama Queens? Liberals? Conservatives? Welcome to SocialAI, where Trollita Kafka, Vera D. Nothing, Sunshine Sparkle, Progressive Parker, Derek Dissent, and Professor Debaterson are here to support you or tell you why you’re wrong.
