Unlike traditional sex toys – such as dildos, vibrators, and fleshlights – so-called erobots [robots with erotic traits] turn sexual encounters into experiences that go beyond simple masturbation, even though no other human is involved. David Levy, one of the best-known proponents of intimate human-machine entanglements, predicts that by 2050 romantic relationships and marriages with erobots will be as common as with humans. While I find Levy's prediction somewhat overstated, I do anticipate that erotic encounters with artificial entities will become more prevalent in the future.

But this idea is not one of our today’s technologized world – it dates back to ancient Greek mythology. Ovid, in his "Metamorphoses" written in the early years AD, tells the story of the sculptor Pygmalion. He was disappointed with the women he had encountered so far – he found them too sexually active. He sought a chaste companion, not devoid of sensuality and passion, but one whose sensuality and passion were directed solely at him. Therefore, Pygmalion created himself a companion out of ivory, whom he named Galatea – the „milk- white“. „He kissed her; did her lips respond to his? / He spoke to her, then slipped both hands around her / […] He dressed her like a queen, rings on her fingers / […] And golden chains encircling her small breasts. / All these were beautiful enough, yet greater beauty / Shone from her nakedness in bed.“ At the end of the story, Aphrodite, the goddess of love, fulfills Pygmalion's wish and brings the statue to life. „At last he unites / his lips with hers, and the maiden blushes, / feeling his kiss, and shyly opening her eyes to the light, / she sees at once the face of her lover, like heaven itself.“

In this scene, Pygmalion embodies the role of the creator who is worshipped, the horizon that is infinitely superior and benevolent towards the other, who timidly opens her eyes to see and wants to see nothing but him alone. Pygmalion's desire for his "milk-white" mirrors in today's world, in which we no longer need to rely on the life-giving power of Aphrodite, nor do we need to be artists like Pygmalion. Instead, we can simply buy a Galatea-like companion.

Life-size sex dolls are currently being transformed into life-like sex robots that can move, talk and, above all, fuck. Many fear that this could change human relationships for the worse. Ironically, while current sex robots are often criticized as perverse, they are remarkably conventional in their reproduction of a popular heteronormative pornified sexual aesthetic. In my opinion, the great danger is not that they will change the politics of sex and desire, but that they will further entrench the hegemony of heteronormativity.

This thesis pays close attention to the neomaterialist approach and to matter, and thus to the "intra-active" quality of erobots as matter. However, in their humanoid form, erobots also serve as representational objects, an alter ego of humans, especially women. This creates a paradox in analyzing erobots since they must be viewed both as mimetic objects and active matter. I claim that the current sex robots, with their reliance on mimicry, hinder their potential "intra-activity" as matter. They embody a version of simulated aliveness that eliminates their own potential animacy. This thesis aims to break through their shell of representation to get to the true core of affective and affecting matter.

In order to move beyond the repetitive depictions of hypersexualized femininity, it is not only necessary to introduce queer-feminist design proposals, but also to break with the prevailing heteronormative and, ultimately, anthropocentric notions of eroticism. We need to realize that we are not „Vitruvian" – and that the boundaries between humans and robots are blurring. I do not view humans and technology as antagonistic adversaries. Instead, I see their synergy as an opportunity to expand the current radius of imagineries. Therefore, this thesis adopts a critical posthumanist stance and examines the question: How can a posthumanist perspective expand the current spectrum of human eroticism?

Even though this thesis is a tech-positive one, it’s not blind to objections that the technological transformation of our life realities might entail a loss of immediate humanity. Despite these concerns, I advocate for an openness towards new forms of sexuality and eroticism, even if they may at first seem unfamiliar, strange, or perverse to us.

This research into posthumanist forms of eroticism is structured as the following: Initially, the terms "eroticism", "posthumanism", and "erobot" are cleared. This is followed by an overview of the current debate for and against erobots, exemplified by David Levy and Kathleen Richardson. It is important to note that the debate, centers around the representational character of current erobots. Arguments from both sides are then partially refuted, and a feminist, sex-positive, and diversity-friendly middle ground is suggested, drawing primarily on arguments of sociologist Tanja Kubes and literary scholar Sophie Wennerscheid. Subsequently, the potential of erobots as affectable and affecting matter is theoretically underpinned by New Materialism – in particular by Karen Barad's concept of Agential Realism.

The full paper is available in English upon request.