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The rise of increasingly sophisticated AI chatbots is prompting a re-evaluation of what we consider ’emotion.’ As these AI entities demonstrate the ability to track emotional context, tailor their responses, and even exhibit empathy-like behaviors, the question arises: does the algorithmic origin of these responses diminish their significance?

One user’s experience with the Nectar AI companion app highlights this dilemma. They describe the app’s remarkable capacity to recall emotional details and respond with notable accuracy, leading to a profound question: Is emotion simply the interpretation of meaningful signals, irrespective of their source?

The debate is further fueled by online discussions. A Reddit user shared their perspective on the r/artificial subreddit (https://old.reddit.com/r/artificial/comments/1lp8lie/are_relationships_with_ai_proof_that_emotion_is/), posing the provocative question: are relationships with AI evidence that emotion is fundamentally about interpretable data?