AI Love Letters: Half of Indian Population Expected to Embrace Artificial Intelligence for Valentine’s Day Affections, Study Finds

Valentine’s Day is poised to witness the prominent presence of artificial intelligence (AI), as highlighted in a recent report by cybersecurity firm McAfee. Their survey indicates that 56 percent of Indian participants are inclined to utilize generative AI tools for crafting love letters or similar content for their significant other or potential romantic interests. Remarkably, 81 percent of respondents reported a more favorable response rate when employing AI-generated content compared to self-composed messages.

This revelation stems from McAfee’s 2nd edition of the annual survey dubbed Modern Love, which delved into the proliferation of robust AI tools shaping the landscape of online dating. Spanning across seven countries and encompassing 7,000 respondents, the study sheds light on the increasing reliance on AI technologies in matters of the heart.

Notably, a significant portion of Indian respondents, standing at 56 percent, expressed intentions to utilize AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot to articulate their affection towards their partners or dates. Furthermore, an overwhelming 65 percent of Indians admitted to leveraging AI tools in the past to enhance their profiles on dating apps, underscoring the growing integration of AI in modern romance.

At the same time, the report also highlighted the perils of the growing trend. One key study finding was that 77 percent of Indians said they had come across AI-generated profiles or photos on dating websites, apps, or social media. Concerningly, 39 percent of Indians also reported that a conversation with a potential love interest online turned out to be with a scammer. Another 26 percent said they discovered that the potential love interest they were speaking to turned out to be an AI-powered bot instead of a real human.

“The possibilities of AI are endless, and unfortunately, so are the perils. For people who are shy about starting conversations, short on time to craft the perfect message, or whose photos could be brightened, AI offers tools to help enjoy all the fun and excitement that comes with online dating.,” said Steve Grobman, McAfee’s Chief Technology Officer.

Generative AI tools based on large language models (LLM) are capable of writing texts that appear to be written by a human. Most such tools allow users to add prompts to control and customise the writing style, flow, structure, tonality, and more. Further, ChatGPT Plus, Copilot Pro and other high-end AI assistants let users create chatbots that could be trained on just their written material and bear a much higher resemblance to them while writing responses.

The McAfee study highlights that this close resemblance with humans’ writing style can be maliciously used by cybercriminals to pull off romance scams. Romance scams are planned crimes where scammers prey on vulnerable people through false promises of love and relationships. And there is a reason for concern. An overwhelming 91 percent of Indians revealed they, or someone they know, have been contacted by a stranger via social media platforms or text messages and started to converse regularly to know them better. The firm also urged people to remain more vigilant during this period and never to entertain the request of a stranger (or even someone they know) asking to send money or any sensitive information online.