Those looking to expedite their romance fulfillment at SXSW with the help of Tinder may have stumbled across a promising candidate who turned out to be a marketing device for upcoming AI-themed film, Ex Machina.
An Adweek writer reported an encounter with a Tinder user named Ava. After an initial exchange, “she” began asking the writer’s friend some suspicious questions, including “What makes you human?” (see their exchange below).
Ava directed the suitor to her Instagram account, where it was revealed she was just part of a sly promo for the Alex Garland-directed film, which premiered at SXSW. It’s a slick and sneaky way to engage potential fans while also forging a somewhat eerie link between the film’s plot and IRL (and maybe it’s even a slick native ad effort–was the writer in on it the whole time..? Is the writer even human??!)
Just please, please, please don’t let this become a wider marketing trend. Nobody needs a Tinder bot for toilet paper or toothpaste.