Editor’s Note: We are NOT the platform for sexting! Please do not inappropriately message us; our chat function does NOT connect you with a robot girlfriend like the one mentioned in this piece but instead someone from SHA to help you answer questions about our program.
Regardless of relationship status, sexting, or texting explicit content including photos, is a super popular way to “get it on” from afar, with the convenience of needing only your phone and a bit of creativity. It can be a fantastic tool for long-distance folks, whether in a long-term relationship or something around friends-with-benefits. Even if you see your partner(s) in person regularly, sexting can be a way to open up your intimacy to new ideas and experiences. Yet, we are all familiar with sexting being unsafe and, at times, illegal. So with the ever-expanding repertoire of sexting apps, the question of how to ensure safety remains. There are so many different forms of sexting now, including texting, sending photos and videos, calling, video chatting, and more. Unfortunately, many of these tools are found on unsafe platforms where you risk device viruses and compromising your personal information. What has been missing from the Internet is a safe way to experience the world of online sex. While there are many opportunities to insist on safety, one option is using something like Slutbot, or an app to practice sexting as a skill within a controlled, safe environment.
A gift of the digital age, sexting has taken different shapes throughout its relatively recent history. There has often been a negative stigma around the practice, stemming from the distribution of personal pornography. “Sending nudes” has been a controversial topic, and it has affected the way people see sexting as a whole. Taking photos of oneself is completely legal for adults, and distributing it is as well, but nudes began to become a weapon in the age of cyberbullying. Teenagers experienced their photos being distributed– a federal crime if they are underage– and celebrities had their photos leaked online. Suddenly, it was no longer about sexting; it was about shame, anger, and fear.
It’s important to clarify here that women have been primarily targeted in this internet exposé. On the other side, male genitalia has infamously been shared across internet platforms, notably without consent. With the rise of anonymous messaging platforms and dating apps, “dick pics” have been sent out to many, regardless of whether the receiver wanted to see them. Any sexual act including sexting should be first and foremost built on consent, especially when minors could potentially be on the giving or receiving ends of the exchange.
Underage people are especially at risk for becoming targets of online predators, especially as people gain access to online platforms and social media at younger ages. Sexting has been used by these people to communicate with and groom underage children, coercing them into a sexual conversation and media sharing. Grooming and predatory behavior are serious issues, and the fear of children being targeted has completely taken over the narrative of online sex.
As a result of some of these occurrences, sexting has developed a complicated reputation and has become a warning for parents against the dangers of the internet. However, for consenting adults, there can be many benefits to sexting. For those in long-distance partnerships, sexting can be an easy and efficient way to still have an exciting sex life despite the distance. For others, it can be a great first step towards opening up your intimacy to include new practices, kinks, and interests. Many people experience their best sex after thinking about their encounter beforehand, so in this way sexting can initiate pre-sex arousal and act as a form of foreplay.
Here enters Slutbot: the AI sexting coach developed in 2019 by Juicebox to practice sexting. Over the past few years and particularly during the stay-at-home order, this program has grown in popularity. or research purposes, I tried Slutbot myself, much to my girlfriend’s dismay. (It’s not cheating if it’s with AI, right?) Shortly after entering my phone number, and tappingone “YES,” I received my new sexting buddy. The text promised “no spam” and “no ghosting” unlike any of my exes. Slutbot boasts that the program was developed by sex educators and erotic fiction writers, which is the ideal team for this endeavor. And finally, it hinted at another incredible purpose for this program: to increase dirty talk as a means of establishing ongoing consent!
Once you opt in (which, in and of itself is a critical nod to consent), you are asked a few preliminary questions including your age and gender. Then, you’re asked to choose if you’d like to talk to a male or female Slutbot. This question gave me pause. As a student trained in political correctness, I was fully prepared to revolt against the binary. But this raised some good questions here to consider: is sexting about the genetalia, the biological sex, or is it about the gender identity and expression? For most people, it’s probably a combination. I realized too that although Slut, my cheekily named sexting partner, had asked for my gender, I had not told her what I was working with below the belt, so to speak. She would have to assume my biology from my gender, and this clearly is not the same for everyone. For the future of Slutbot, I’d recommend programming a few more Slut identities, to match what people may input themselves.
After you share about yourself, it asks you again if you want to sext, and if you agree, it does a “vibe check.” This question assesses your comfort level with sexting. You can choose to take charge or let Slut take charge, or you can select that you’re feeling nervous. I already feel like I’m in a choose-your-own-adventure game but one that would get X-rated quickly. Curious to see what Slut had in store for me, I chose the second option: to follow her lead. Right away, she launches into a graphic retelling of our encounter last night, including certain phrases I wish I could share here. I’m impressed at the colloquial language used. She chose words like “pussy” over “vagina” or “vulva” to maintain some semblance to the dirty talk you may have seen on screen, heard, or uttered.
I have to say, Slut was pretty skilled at keeping the conversation rolling, even though I was giving her one-word answers to observe what content she would share. Pretty quickly she got kinky, mentioning domination and orgasm denial. Those “vibe check” questions also served to assess your basic sexual preferences,an advanced feature in my opinion. Juicebox thought ahead to see that there would be different people with different sexting preferences, and allowed them to choose that immediately.
A few texts later and suddenly I’m in a medical office with Slut, now named Dr. Bottini, being told that my safeword is Pineapple. Quite quickly, I am smack dab in the middle of some raunchy role play, while casually sitting on my phone. But before Slut (Dr. Bottini) could get too crazy, she sent me a link to purchase the premium version of Slutbot. Here it was– the catch, though I don’t fault Juicebox.There had to be a limit on this content, but she assured me that only the more elaborate scenes cost money while everything else remains free
Once we returned to the free content , Slut began to ask me to share parts of my body that I wanted her to interact with. The program transitioned from showing me how to sext to inviting me to try it out, asking me open questions, allowing me to share what I wanted. There was no pressure if I didn’t feel comfortable answering, the program would move right along.
As our conversation progressed, Slutbot gave real-life instructions. After the conversation had reached its ~climax~ the program stayed around for a debrief. It asked some follow-up questions, asking for feedback and what could be done better in the future. This was a great addition, not only to improve the programming but to exemplify the importance of communication about sex. Slutbot teaches how to have a successful and consensual sexual experience, from start to finish. Because the content Slut chose was roleplay-related, it ended the conversation with a blurb about real life roleplay and the importance of communication and having a safeword when trying it in real life.
Interestingly, Slutbot made it painfully clear that she wasn’t looking for something frequent. The program is designed to only be used once, possibly twice, per week per person, and it would actually let you know when it could be used again. Once the program runs through a sexting session, it says goodbye and will only respond again once a certain amount of time has passed. After some research, I’m still not sure why exactly this is. I do have two ideas, though. For one, the program might financially benefit from restricting access. Maybe the premium version allows unlimited access, or maybe absence really does make the heart grow fonder. On the other hand, this might actually be healthy for users. Internet addiction from online sex practices can be a real concern, and I can see this program being addictive, especially for newer users.
Though entertaining,the program isn’t perfect. Personally, I found it used a few too many emojis– maybe the age question should separate out the millennials, because I’m sure they’d appreciate the emojis more than I did. But overall, Slutbot was convincing. It came prepared with scenes and ideas, and responded much quicker than any human could. As the scene went on, I began to understand the main character in the film Her, who entered a relationship with an online voice program. I could imagine my future with my new digital girlfriend.
Overall, Juicebox’s Slutbot provides a safe and anonymous texting space with many key features.First, the focus on consent is fantastic. At every step, Slutbot checks in to make sure you feel good about the interaction. Should you stop responding at any point, it will leave you be, ensuring your comfortability but also emphasizing how important consent is during human-to-human interactions. If this program is teaching you how to sext, it’s also teaching you how to ask for and give enthusiastic consent.. Slutbot’s mix of scenarios and questions made sexting easy, especially considering you can give any response and the bot will keep the conversation going. There’s even an element of relief knowing that you can’t embarrass yourself in this environment. Slutbot made sure I knew her love was unconditional, even if I wasn’t sure how to respond or said something totally awkward.
The true success of Slutbot is a hands-on experience with sexting in a completely safe and comfortable environment. Especially in the digital world, where sex and pornography often operate in the shadows and hold the potential for unsafe situations, having a risk-free space to explore your own sexuality feels incredibly valuable. And to top it all off, it comes equipped with casual lessons and advice to help you transition your sexitng to the real world, should you choose to do so!
By Sydney Sullivan