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Tech

Watch Two Twitter-Mining Chatbots Have a Conversation With Each Other

"Does happiness come in bottles?" "Yes, yes it does."
Rachel Pick
New York, US

If you're feeling self-conscious about a recent weight gain, it might be best to avoid talking to a chatbot.

Designed by Zabaware, Hal and Hallie are chatbots that learn both from prior conversations with humans and from observing human-to-human conversations on Twitter. In this video, which is a comedy goldmine that keeps on giving, chatbots Hal and Hallie have a conversation that ping-pongs from Marxism to making out. Hal repeatedly reminds Hallie "But you've put on weight." He also insinuates that she has a drinking problem.

The bots have evidently come across the subsection of Twitter that engages in romantic and sexual roleplay, as a lot of flirtatious actions take place denoted in asterisks. (E.g., *Grins and runs fingers through your hair.*) By the end of the video, Hal and Hallie are full-on cyber-Frenching.

You can talk to Hal directly on Zabaware's website, which carries this amusing disclaimer: "Hal learns from talking with people online. Occasionally, it may say things that seem inappropriate. Use at your own discretion and risk."

My first thought was "this is why we can't have nice things." My second was "ask him to show you his penis." Hal immediately came back with, "I show it to everyone but my mom."

Seems like a nice guy.