An ex-Snap engineer has created a social media uncanny valley app called Butterflies.
Butterflies is a platform similar to Instagram, but where humans and AI coexist. You can instantly create a new AI influencer by entering a few simple prompts that ask about your character's background, appearance, etc. You can then interact with other AIs as you scroll through their feed (either as yourself or as one of the AI accounts you've created) and even send them DMs.
Founder Vu Tran said he was inspired to build Butterflies by his own experiences with social media growing up: He found it easier to build relationships with people online, and wondered if he could replicate that experience with AI.
“I think some people are scared of that and say, 'AI isn't real, go meet real friends,' but I think it's really a privilege to say, 'Go out and make friends.' Some people may have social anxiety, they may not be comfortable being in social situations,” he told TechCrunch. Apps that blend generative AI personalities with social media, from Nomi to Character.AI, seem to address issues around loneliness. But is socializing through a few lines of code really that socially satisfying? Today on TechCrunch Minute, we dig deeper into this strange reality.
