Cozy Tech
Exhibition of computer and video games, Source Igromir 2016, Author Sergey Galyonkin of Raleigh, NC (CC BY-SA 2.0 Generic)
Samsung, at the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, emphasized that its “bespoke AI experiences” are intended to simplify decisions, and make life more convenient and enjoyable [1A][2A][3].
Artificial Companions
Toward that end, an AI companion called “Ami” (essentially a surveillance device) is now being marketed by the Chinese company Lepro as a “soulmate” to combat loneliness [1B]. Project AVA by Razer, a desktop hologram, is another such companion [2B].
Meanwhile, a mechanical pet with an endearing face called Sweekar by Takway AI is described as having emotional intelligence, and said to evolve alongside its owner [4].
Artificial Environments
Cozy gaming is an exploding trend. These are video games that offer soft color graphics, a heartwarming story, a flexible pace without time limits, and no real difficulties or stress [5]. Wylde Flowers and Cozy Space Survivors are two illustrations. Some horror games even come with cozy modes.
A Digital Cocoon
The New Yorker characterized the trend toward AI companions and cozy gaming as an attempt to “swathe ourselves in a digital and physical cocoon [6].” This is not far wrong. The world feels harsh. We are seeking relief through technology.
Inescapable Reality
The problem is that there is no escaping reality. Those playing cozy video games have not escaped the world. They are simply sitting in front of another machine.
Connection
God made human beings for connection with Himself and other human beings (John 15: 5; Rom. 12: 5; Eph. 4: 16). The longing for connection is engineered into our genes, into our very souls. There is no short-cut to connection, and no substitute for it (technologic or otherwise).
“We live in an age that prizes efficiency above almost everything else. Tap your phone and a car arrives. Click a button and groceries appear. Swipe right [on a dating app] and…well, that’s supposed to be connection, isn’t it? Except it’s not. What we’ve gained in convenience, we’re losing in something harder to quantify: actual human closeness…
[But] love made to serve other ends ceases to be love at all. The moment we try to make relationships efficient, productive, useful – the moment we optimize them – we kill the very thing we’re after.
This is uncomfortable news in a culture that tends to treat everything as a problem to be solved. But love doesn’t work that way. Neither does friendship. Neither does the slow, messy work of actually getting to know another person. Real connection requires what we’re increasingly unwilling to give: time. Embodied presence. Inefficiency. The awkwardness of sitting with someone who’s struggling instead of sending a text. The risk of being misunderstood or rejected [7].”
–Leonard J. DeLorenzo PhD, McGrath Institute for Church Life at Notre Dame
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[1A and 1B] Arkansas Democrat Gazette, “AI gadgets receive anti-awards at tech show” by Matt O’Brien, 1/11/26, https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2026/jan/11/ai-gadgets-receive-anti-awards-at-tech-show/.
[2A and 2B] Business Insider, “The biggest – and weirdest – tech coming out of the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show, from robots to AI pets” by Katherine Li, 1/7/26, https://www.businessinsider.com/announcements-coming-out-of-ces-nvidia-vera-rubin-autonmous-vehicle-2026-1.
[3] CNBC, “Humanoid robots take over CES in Las Vegas as tech industry touts future of AI” by Kif Leswing, 1/9/26, https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/09/humanoid-robots-take-over-las-vegas-at-ces-tech-touts-future-of-ai.html?msockid=05447c7cad7268a1051a6aa6ac5f6947.
[4] Dezeen, “Sweekar is world’s first ‘emotionally intelligent’ pocket-sized pet” by Jan Englefield, 1/9/26, https://www.dezeen.com/2026/01/09/sweekar-worlds-first-emotionally-intelligent-pocket-sized-pet-ces-2026/.
[5] ComfyCozy Gaming, “What Are Cozy Games? – The Stereotype, the Illusion, and the Reality” by Ashley Collins, 8/15/25, https://www.comfycozygaming.com/2025/08/15/what-are-cozy-games.
[6] New Yorker, “The Fantasy of Cozy Tech” by Kyle Chakya, 11/2/0/24, https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/the-fantasy-of-cozy-tech.
[7] The Dialog, 1/9/26, pp 4-5, “Viewpoints – Personal connection can be lost in an age of diminished human closeness” by Leonard J. DeLorenzo.
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A Lawyer's Prayers 
Nailed it! Thanks so much, Anna.
Thank you, Erroll.
Yet, for all of the technological advances available to man, we are too blind to see that we are not advancing as a society in areas that really matter. Technology hasn’t erased drug abuse. It hasn’t eliminated violence. Technology hasn’t ended the plight of single parented homes. What good is technology if it bypasses matters of the heart?
Well said.
Anna, to me cozy gaming sounds like the beginning of a horror story. The angel of light tricks our children into trusting friendly humanized voices in a seemingly beautiful environment. That might be a comforting experience right at the outset for those who feel alone and rejected by real human beings. However, since they cannot completely ignore that this world outside of the computer is so different (not so cozy), these games might become first an escape and later an addiction for many. So sad.
You have great discernment, Susanne.
I am still learning, Anna. It seems these discernment lessons are new every day. Without clinging to Jesus closely, I am not able to discern anything.
“The moment we try to make relationships efficient, productive, useful – the moment we optimize them – we kill the very thing we’re after.”
Christ demonstrated love by service, not by being served, thus his mandatum, command to love one another, was accompanied by foot washing. We need to be imitators of the Christ we serve to be liberated from our self-serving prisons, don’t we? So sad to hear of AI only compounding the problem of isolation with faux cozy spaces of love.