We all need friends in life. I think it's one true thing about life that we can't ultimately deny. Some people withdraw into themselves and mostly prefer to be alone, yet these people have those they call friends. It may be just a few of them or one or two individuals they trust and hold closely to. Whatever the case, we need friends and even the most reserved and withdrawn people need and have them.
Friends are there for many good reasons. These are the people who can be a support system to one, those who could help to uplift one, help one become and do better, and even the people who will listen and give emotional support. Friends play a great role in a person's life. Well, good friends. But what if we could have a robot as a friend, would that be something we would welcome?
From some of the things I mentioned, you would understand that a friend goes beyond a name or a presence, but something more. I reckon that a robot could provide time and presence and should be able to listen when you communicate either good or bad moments and offer some good feedback. The issue is, it lacks emotions, which is one vital attribute, and one thing that helps in how we relate with friends especially in difficult moments.
A robot doesn't have this element of emotions owing to the fact that it acts based on command. This is to say that, it can't really understand the various situations to be able to give the needed support. Well, we can say such a robot could be advanced enough to understand a person's situation and give the best possible support according to that situation. But again, these are commands, and what if it fails to understand a command?
In whatever sense, I don't think I'll welcome the idea of a robot as a friend. I don't see myself running out of friends to depend on the friendship of a robot. Humans understand humans better, no matter how advanced and developed a robot can be. A valid reason could be that humans betray, and many have gone through that from so-called friends, so a robot could be a good option. However, it's those humans that are the problem here not humanity.
The lack of feelings and emotions from a robot, and that it acts based on commands makes it not a welcome option for me. The robot can fail, and perhaps that is its own betrayal. It can experience a glitch and act on the wrong command and might even end up becoming harmful to me. Also, the fact that there'll be a lack of a deep connection doesn't make it appealing to me. So, I don't think I would really want a robot friend.