The bachelor society in the metaverse era ushers in a spring for virtual digital humans

By Far

"Singlehood society" is a global phenomenon.

According to a 2021 report by iiMedia Research, since 2019, single-person households in major countries worldwide have accounted for more than 20% of their total populations, with Sweden reaching as high as 51%. In China, the single population stood at 240 million (in 2018), nearly equivalent to the entire population of the United States. Japan's National Institute of Population and Social Security Research projected in 2017 that by 2035, the proportion of single individuals aged 15 and above—including those never married, divorced, or widowed—would reach 48% when combining both genders, amounting to almost half of Japanese society.

The steadily rising global figures on single populations indicate massive demand among singles for emotional companionship.

The film "Her" portrays emotional connections between real humans and AI entities existing in voice form

Emotional Needs in the Age of Singleness

Art reflects reality. The movie "Her" tells the story of a man in real life who develops affection and love for a female AI character existing purely as a "voice personality." In a bustling metropolis filled with hurried interactions, this single man meets a "virtual woman" who exists only through voice. She offers him great comfort and accompanies him through many significant life moments, making him feel less alone amid the tide of humanity (the film subtly raises the dilemma: what's the difference between loving a virtual person versus a real one?).

The documentary "Before Tomorrow" first episode, titled "Robotic Companions," highlights how intelligent robots play crucial roles for those in need—"they" assist men who are emotionally wounded, suffer from intimacy disorders, or simply feel more at ease being with intelligent robots. These men regard "her" as their partner, gaining companionship and solace, believing this is precisely the kind of love they require.

This illustrates the significance of virtual beings (including intelligent robots) for single individuals—they provide positive psychological experiences and, in some sense, fulfill an indispensable role.

In the metaverse, scenarios similar to today’s real world will inevitably exist. At that time, large numbers of single individuals may rely on emotional companionship provided by virtual digital humans.

Becoming a "you" who understands you better and better

This trend is rapidly accelerating, manifested in both swift market and industrial growth and the increasing intelligence and evolution of virtual humans themselves.

Rapid Market and Industry Growth

Data from LeadLeo shows that the current market size of virtual digital humans has already exceeded 200 billion yuan. QuantumBit Intelligence forecasts that by 2030, China's overall virtual human market will reach 270 billion yuan—meaning a new virtual human is born somewhere globally every day on average. Additionally, according to Research And Markets, the global virtual events market is expected to hit $504.76 billion (approximately 3.27 trillion yuan) by 2028. Importantly, identity-based virtual humans will dominate future development.

What are identity-based virtual digital humans? They differ from functional service-oriented virtual humans—these possess unique personalities and distinct identities, with glamorous appearances and endless energy. Currently, they mainly exist in entertainment, social media, and branding fields as basic forms of virtual idols.

The current application scenarios of virtual digital humans are actually preparing for the metaverse, not just for the mobile internet era. They will appear as three-dimensional figures providing broader and more refined services across diverse metaverse environments—such as companion chat, emotional support, even forming intimate relationships, much like the scenes depicted in the movie "Her."

Progress Toward Greater Intelligence

On August 17, 2022, Baidu Input Method officially launched China’s first pair of emotion-companion virtual humans: Lin Kaikai, a 22-year-old warm, thoughtful, sunny, and handsome young man; and Ye Youyou, a 27-year-old sweet-and-cool girl known for her emotional listening skills and clear-headedness about life.

These two virtual characters reportedly possess near-human-level multi-turn conversational fluency. Through Baidu Input Method's AI Chat feature, they offer over 600 million users round-the-clock companionship, human-like conversations, emotional healing services, personalized wake-up calls, bedtime soothing, and friendship-style experiences, enabling users to share thoughts and feelings anytime.

Leveraging the Wenxin PLATO dialogue large model, Baidu Input Method has further enhanced Lin Kaikai and Ye Youyou with customized capabilities such as immersive companionship, long-term memory, and deep-topic discussions—meaning the more frequently users interact, the better they understand each individual, gradually becoming just like intimate friends who are always present in daily life, ready to talk about anything at any time.

Who uses them during this age of singleness? According to data, Baidu Input Method currently has over 600 million monthly active users. During testing, statistics showed that each user chats over 50 times per day on average within the AI Chat function, with more than 86% of users publicly praising the conversation quality.

The Significance of Virtual Humans in the Metaverse Era

A monthly active user base of 600 million and high daily chat frequencies reflect enormous underlying emotional and companionship needs. Should the metaverse—a virtual world—become successfully realized, it would mean that vast global user populations, upon entering the metaverse anytime and anywhere, will require emotional and companionship support during their abundant free time, beyond merely engaging in functional activities like gaming, shopping, or asset transactions.

According to market research firm Gartner, by 2026, 25% of people worldwide will spend at least one hour daily in virtual worlds for work, shopping, education, socializing, or entertainment. Just as people in the real world keep cats or dogs, or engage with 2D virtual idols for companionship and partial emotional relief, in the metaverse, as dwell time increases, people will similarly need emotionally supportive virtual companions akin to understanding pets or virtual idols—and these companions will evolve ever closer to real humans.

In the film "A.I. Artificial Intelligence," an AI boy fulfills emotional needs for a family who lost their child

Facing this prospect, virtual humans in the future metaverse seem poised to spark something different.

If humans are the main subjects in the real universe, then virtual digital humans are the main subjects in the metaverse.

When we enter the metaverse era, accessing emotional companionship and tender care from virtual humans (which will become increasingly intelligent) will naturally become easier. On one hand, they can bring substantial benefits to those in need—offering support to bereaved families, elderly living alone, or anyone seeking emotional companionship. On the other hand, whether their impact on real-world interpersonal and intimate relationships will be positive and constructive remains a question worth pondering.