In China, artificial intelligence is now preparing for awkward interrogations during the New Year holidays
Nearly nine billion trips are expected to be made during the annual Spring Festival holiday which begins this Friday, February 9. A family reunion which can be a test for young people, harassed by questions from those around them. To prepare for this, an online game has just been released in which artificial intelligence plays the role of relatives who are a little too insistent.
The Chinese Lunar New Year is also known as the Spring Festival. It is an opportunity for many families to come together. AP
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With the RFI office in Beijing,
Stéphane Lagarde
and
Chi Xiangyuan
“
Decisive battle at the top for Lunar New Year greetings
”: in this free game released a week ago,
artificial intelligence
pretends to be your aunt, your uncle, your parents and grandparents, big fans of questions which make you uncomfortable. “
I find this game quite fun, it feels like we’re celebrating the new year by fighting with everyone
,” says Zimu, 23, a doctoral student in biology in Wuhan in central China. "
At my age, especially for us women, you can't escape questions like, 'Do
you have a boyfriend? Are you getting married soon
?'" And then in the game , in addition to the pressure on marriage, there is also the pressure to find a job
.”
Podcasts to discuss taboo subjects
Unemployment
among young graduates
is at an all-time high in China, so much so that it has been
erased from official statistics
. Faced with the bombardment of Lunar New Year questions, podcasts like
Yan Wai Zhi Yi
ask young people, and particularly young women, how they respond to uncomfortable conversations with elders. “
Afterwards, there are people more or less open than others in families. For my part, I am still young and I am studying, so they leave me alone. But sometimes, some cling to feudal thinking, when others like an aunt or uncle understand the times in which we live, it is with them that we must discuss
,” continues Zimu.
TR In the island province of Hainan, in the south of China, a girl crosses the street with a banner: "Mom! I really don't want to get married!" On the networks, the cry from the heart becomes a slogan for young people. #China #WeddingNoThanks https://t.co/TQSbxPwXN1
— Stéphane Lagarde (@StephaneLagarde) June 8, 2023
Also listen: China: on the eve of the Lunar New Year holidays, the depression of train drivers
The number of marriages plummeting in China
The question of marriage and children is all the more complicated as the number of unions is declining in China. “
For the most stubborn, the best thing is to try to answer them directly
,” explains Zimu.
I remember a comment on the networks stating that women aged 20, or even teenagers, were suitable for marriage. I responded to the person saying that in the past the average lifespan was 40 years and if we followed that logic he should die immediately
.” The other solution is to “
answer magic with magic
”, as Jacky Chan would say, that is to say, answer with another uncomfortable question.
“
We can also exploit this cultural taboo of not talking openly about sex. When someone asks you if you are going to have children, you might say something like: "I
don't know how to have children, can you explain to me in detail?"
Usually the conversation stops!
»
Players express themselves freely. Each of their responses causes emotional changes in their virtual loved ones. It is only by ending the conversation with all the members of the family and therefore this “torture of the soul” that these interrogations during the Spring Festival holidays can represent, that the game ends.
Read alsoThe video game industry already facing the challenge of AI
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