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With the rise of AI companions who serve as online friends<\/a> or romantic interests<\/a>, experts are questioning how the technology affects our real-world social connections and relationships.<\/p>\n According to Kasley Killam, author of the social health-focused book<\/a> \u201cThe Art and Science of Connection: Why Social Health Is the Missing Key to Living Longer, Healthier, and Happier,\u201d there may be some benefits to using AI as a tool to practice social interactions, but the technology should only be used to augment, not replace, our personal relationships and real-world connections.<\/p>\n On Friday, the social health expert and graduate of the Harvard School of Public Health explained during a panel at the SXSW conference in Austin that she was skeptical that AI could improve people\u2019s social skills.<\/p>\n She noted that AI companies will often tout the benefit of using their AI companions as a way for people to practice conversations and other social skills for use in the real world.<\/p>\n \u201cThat may be true,\u201d she said, but she warned that this type of practice should not replace real-world connections.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to have a society where people feel comfortable and have opportunities practicing that in person \u2014 like if we\u2019re teaching this in schools and practicing it in real time, then that just becomes part of our toolkit for how to go about life,\u201d Killam said.<\/p>\n The author also noted that while she was researching her book, she found that \u201chundreds of millions\u201d of users were already using AI as a \u201cfriend, as a lover, as a husband, as a wife, as a boyfriend, [or] as a girlfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n