OVER THE LAST few years, the term “weaponized incompetence” has blown up in dating discourse online.
It’s used to describe someone—most often the guy, when it comes to heterosexual relationships—who acts like they are incapable of doing things like cooking, cleaning, scheduling, and just generally being thoughtful, in the hopes that their partner will simply take care of it.
A new AI agent, Orchid, was advertised this week as a way to fix relationship problems by simply doing all of those tasks for an inconsiderate partner instead.
In the promo, released on Wednesday, Sam, a boyfriend who is busy gaming and rifling through expired groceries, has forgotten his anniversary. “Ok ok, I can do this,” he types to Orchid, when the AI agent reminds him of the day’s significance. “You can’t. That’s why I’m here,” Orchid replies, as it goes about making a reservation and buying his girlfriend’s favorite flowers—lilies—another detail he didn’t remember. The girlfriend, who is also consulting Orchid throughout the day, is well aware that the AI assistant is doing all of this labor, yet somehow allows Sam to take credit for the whole plan.
The rollout was blasted by users on X, for advertising to “adult babies uninterested in the world they live in” and “perpetuating … dead-end relationship[s] that both parties secretly hate.”
