Auto-chat app sparks social skills concern

"Not just people's loneliness in the real world, but also their lack of trust in society, has contributed to the success of the auto-reply app," said "ccllong" on Twitter-like Sina Weibo.

The chick is not the first technology of its kind to draw netizens' attention. "Xiaotu," a robot-like auto-reply app on the website of the prestigious Tsinghua University's library, quickly went viral last year after users found it cute and cunning.

Like "Xiaotu," the chick also has the ability to learn by itself. It understands the latest news events, hot words, and even dirty jokes, which it actually learns from online followers.

An in-built "teach" button has enabled its users to design and update commonly used language for the program.

For example, when the chick receives a new buzz word beyond its database, the app will automatically memorize it and use it in subsequent responses.

Humanized as the the auto-reply system may seem, some netizens have been disappointed to learn that they are only communicating with a program speaking a computer code-converted language.

"I'd rather talk with my mother," said "_goushu_" on Sina Weibo.

Di Qian, a Chinese student at the University of Pennsylvania, is just one of those disillusioned by the app. An analytical article he wrote and posted on his blog may speak for most of the chick's followers.

"We are disappointed that the chick is just a program. But it also means that there is no such person that can come to us any moment when we need them. It is only us. We always need a companion, be it with family members or our loved ones," wrote Di on his Renren account.