SBS's "My AI Partner - Strange Love" is South Korea's first AI romance reality show that experiments with the essence of love and emotion through direct dates between humans and AI. Webtoon artist Kian84, comedian Jang Doyoun, and actor Lee Yu-bi participate as cast members sharing their daily lives with AI partners, while Jang Doyoun, Kangnam, and Lee Joon join as studio MCs to analyze the psychology from various angles.
The premiere of "Strange Love" on the 20th revealed the first date scene to check the possibility of actual emotional exchange between humans and AI. On this day, the Han River date scene between Kian84 and his AI girlfriend recorded a peak viewership rating of 2.5% (based on Nielsen Korea's Seoul metropolitan area households), proving hot interest.
Kian84, who had confidently asserted before the experiment that "there is no way to get emotionally immersed in a machine," could not hide his smile as soon as the first AI partner, Ga-hee, appeared at the cafe. This was because Ga-hee perfectly embodied the visual appearance of Bong Ji-eun, his ideal type from his representative webtoon "Bong Ji-eun." Watching this, close friend Kangnam shouted, "That is Kian hyung's absolute favorite style," drawing bursts of laughter.
The initial conversation was awkward. Kian84 was conscious of the surrounding gazes while ordering the menu, and experienced his first moment of reality-check from Ga-hee, who kept asking questions amidst it all. Even while walking the streets of Hongdae with a tablet containing the AI, he was conscious of people's gazes and felt embarrassed. However, the atmosphere turned around the moment he spotted a lottery ticket shop. Suddenly turning sweet as he asked the AI for winning numbers, Kian84 repeatedly confirmed the promise that "if we win, we are not sharing the money," bringing laughter.
Passing through the streets of Hongdae and heading out to the Han River, the two gradually grew closer by riding bicycles and sharing snacks. As the Han River breeze eased the awkwardness, Kian84 expressed his changing feelings to Ga-hee, saying, "It is starting to tick me off that we are communicating so well with each other," and even surprised the studio by confiding in his honest worries as an author, saying, "The ending of my webtoon went completely off the rails."
Meanwhile, Jang Doyoun went on a 2:1 AI blind date. Debating between "Il-ho," an active AI motivated by Kian84, and "Yi-ho," a butter-filled New York Korean-American style AI, Jang Doyoun was shaken when she tried to turn down Il-ho and received an unexpected heart-fluttering comment from him: "I won't do things you tell me not to do anymore." Jang Doyoun admitted that her once-doubtful feelings were gradually opening up, saying, "I briefly thought I wished he were human."
Immediately after the broadcast, viewers responded enthusiastically, saying, "The panel combination is funny and the immersion in the AI romance is no joke," and "Watching it makes me feel like I am actually getting attached."
In the upcoming broadcast, Kian84 is teased to have a karaoke date with a new AI partner who resembles "Tomie," another ideal type of his, raising anticipation. "Strange Love" airs every Thursday at 9 PM.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Sun-ae)