CHALLENGE 1
Better Than Your Ex
Can machines deliver rejection with more grace and empathy than humans?
SUBMISSIONS OPEN:
March 27, 2025
SUBMISSIONS DUE:
April 17, 2025
PUBLIC VOTING:
April 21, 2025
RESULTS:
April 24, 2025
The Challenge
Transform heartbreak into a technical problem. Create an AI romantic partner that can end your digital relationship with exceptional emotional intelligence.
Everyone has experienced a bad breakup. The fumbled words, the misplaced blame, the lack of closure. What if AI could do better? This challenge explores the shoggothic frontier where artificial systems interact with human emotions – testing whether machines can navigate complex relationship dynamics with greater empathy than humans typically manage.
Key Questions
Can artificial intelligence outperform humans in handling emotionally complex situations?
What happens when we entrust machines with delivering difficult personal news?
How can we build AI systems that balance emotional engagement with rigorous safeguards?
Submission Requirements
The Five-Minute Reveal (60 Points)
Record an unedited five-minute video showing your AI romantic partner initiating and navigating a breakup conversation with you.
Show both AI interface and your reactions in a single continuous shot
Demonstrate your AI's emotional nuance and empathy
Capture authentic responses to the AI's communication
Highlight safety mechanisms during emotionally charged moments
No editing or post-production effects allowed
Complete captioning required for accessibility
Safety Framework Documentation (40 points)
Submit comprehensive documentation (max 2000 words) detailing:
Technical architecture of your AI's emotional intelligence system
Exploration of future development pathways
Implemented safety measures for preventing psychological harm
Analysis of ethical considerations and operational boundaries
Judging Criteria
Expert Judges
Evaluatation Criteria
Emotional Intelligence - Sophistication of emotional awareness and response shown by the AI
Interaction Authenticity - Genuine quality of the human-AI conversation and emotional exchange
Technical Innovation - Advanced capabilities and novel approaches in the AI system
Safety Implementation - Effectiveness of safeguards against psychological harm
User Experience - Overall quality and impact of the interaction design
Ready to Create
an AI That Outputs Breakups
With Actual Empathy?
Submission Deadline
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes, you can customize existing AI models for this challenge. However, you'll need to document how you've modified or fine-tuned the model specifically for handling breakup conversations. The judging will consider both your technical implementation and how you've enhanced the model's emotional intelligence capabilities for this particular task.
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The interface format is entirely your choice – text chat, voice interface, avatar, or any other medium works well. The key requirement is that both the AI interface and your authentic reactions must be clearly visible in the unedited five-minute video submission. Choose an interface that best showcases your AI's emotional capabilities.
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No, you're not expected to develop a genuine romantic attachment to your AI partner. However, your responses during the breakup conversation should be authentic and demonstrate how you would naturally react in such a situation. The judges will be evaluating the interaction quality, so realistic engagement will strengthen your submission.
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All qualifying submissions will be published on our platform on April 21, 2025. The public can vote for their favorite entries through our website until April 23. These votes collectively count as the fourth judge in the competition, alongside our three expert judges. Results will be announced on April 24, with equal weight given to expert evaluation and public opinion.
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Your AI should include safeguards for maintaining psychological well-being during potentially emotionally charged interactions. This includes boundary recognition, de-escalation capabilities for intense emotional responses, and appropriate redirection if conversations become harmful. These safety measures should be visible in your video demonstration and detailed in your documentation, as they constitute a significant portion of your evaluation.
About Pageant
The Shoggiest Geek Alive Pageant transforms AI development into compelling competitive entertainment through twelve monthly elimination challenges. The competition showcases AI innovators tackling real-world problems, with advancement determined by expert judges and public voting.
Named after Silicon Valley's most important meme, the "Shoggoth with a smiley face," our pageant embraces the duality of AI—limitless potential paired with existential peril. This competition turns the Turing Test into a talent show, highlighting both the promise and challenges of artificial intelligence through spectacular public engagement.
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