FUTURE SHOCKS
Silicone sex partners for sale and TikTok time travellers at large
ROBOT SEX CLONES
Robotic ‘clones’ of customers’ dead partners could be created with
3D scans in the near future, with the ability to walk and perform other functions, according to sex robot company Lux Botics. The firm claim their artists would use 3D scans to create a mould into which would be placed a robotic ‘skeleton’. The basic model would be painted and fitted with lips, nails, eyebrows and all other required features.
The robot manufacturer says it produces “ultrarealistic humanoids” and uses a flagship model called Stephanie, which comes with speech control, a facial recognition function, and artificial intelligence. But Lux Botics anticipate some clients will commission a custom-built companion based on photos of deceased loved ones. The costs are estimated at $5,000-$10,000 for the artists’ work and one scan, with the 3D printing in the region of $3,000-$5,000. The mould itself would cost an additional $5,000. “We can make robots that talk but we have not made robots that truly walk on their own,” said one of Lux Botics’s co-founders. “We hope to develop this in the near future. We can make a large number of body parts that can move in a realistic manner.” Another company, Sex Doll Genie, produces ‘Enterprisegrade’ AI sex robots which come with MP3 players and can be programmed to say whatever the customer wishes. These AI dolls are equipped with a robotic head powered by Google’s Android 10 operating system. A third sex robot manufacturer, Silicone Lovers, said they have experienced a marked increase in demand for ‘sex robots’ owing to worldwide coronavirus lockdowns. Some customers have requested dolls with human skeletons, and others have asked if they can commission animal-human hybrid robots. “Many people who wouldn’t normally even think of dolls as an option have turned their attention toward dolls,” said a Silicone Lovers spokesperson. “We’ve seen a huge increase in interest from couples as well. Perhaps they might be stuck at home looking at ways to keep sex interesting during lockdown or exploring safe ways to try threesomes.” The spokesperson also claimed that some customers who had lost their partners due to Covid “want a doll to aid with the grieving process,” adding “it’s rewarding to be a part of that kind of healing process and know we’re genuinely helping people.” D.Star, 26 Mar 2021.
TIKTOK TIME TRAVELLER
TikTok user Javier has told his 1.2million followers that he has travelled ahead in time to the year 2027, where, he says, he found a world where humanity has become extinct. His TikTok videos apparently offer support for this alarming forecast. They show buildings, cars and utilities that have remained in place unused, but with no sign of human activity, or, indeed, of people. Javier, who goes by the username @unicosobreviviente (‘only survivor’), posted his first video on 13 February 2021, which
depicts a walk through an empty street in the Spanish city ofValencia. The recording then cuts to an empty clothes shop, stacked full of items but with no staff or customers in sight. However, if he has – as he claims – uploaded the video in the year 2027, then there must still be an Internet connection available. Another TikTok user, @2029man, otherwise known as The Messenger, tells his 600,000 followers that he is from the future and is thus able to make predictions – many of which are proving to be false. On 3 January 2021 he predicted that Congress would reject the electoral college decision on the 2020 presidential election. “This will lead to Nancy Pelosi becoming president on January 20,” he warned. “Be ready.” Clearly, this did not come to pass, and neither did he manage to predict hundreds of rioters storming the US Capitol building. (See FT240 for a time travel special, including the infamous John Titor, who appeared on various bulletin boards in 2000 and 2001 claiming to be a visitor from the year 2036). D.Star, 27 Mar 2021.