Meet Roo, a chatbot to answer all your sex-related questions
What's the story
As the sex education in India is still pretty basic, a sense of awkwardness always prevails around topics like STIs, pregnancy, and sexual orientation. Parents find it hard to have discussions with their kids, leaving them with no option but to search for everything online. Now, to help with this, a sex-ed chatbot called Roo has come to the scene. Here's all about it.
Roo
So, what is Roo exactly?
Developed by Planned Parenthood, a non-profit organization for reproductive health care, Roo is an online chatbot designed to answer potentially uncomfortable sex-related questions. It works automatically and sources information from valid and verified platforms to answer all queries that you may have. Plus, there is no need to sign up, which means all the interaction with the bot remains completely anonymous and confidential.
Advantage
Anonymity keeps your personal queries safe
When you look up for sex-related information online, there is a good chance of running into incorrect answers or things that aren't true. Roo tackles all those concerns by ensuring that the answers you get are accurate, while the questions you put up aren't seen by anyone except you - a requirement of most teenagers, according to Ambreen Molitor, senior director at Planned Parenthood.
Quote
What Molitor said about studying sex-related stuff online
"Sometimes they didn't feel comfortable talking to the community around them or in the sex-ed classrooms," Molitor told Vox. "But also online, because more often than not, Gen Z's teens, in general, are very aware that when you're searching on Google, you're being cookie'd."
Working
And, it's all online so anyone can use it, anywhere
In addition to this, Roo is all online, which means you just have to visit a simple website and start chatting with the bot anytime and anywhere. You can type your own question in chatbox or use the suggestions to have your query answered. Notably, the bot provides an answer in one-two lines but you also have an option to get more information.
Issue
This is a step forward, but not a solution
While a smart chatbot that can answer most sex-related questions - from safe intercourse to coming out - without revealing your identity is a good step, it's not the complete answer to a definite sex education system. Many times, the answer to a human sexuality-related question is more comprehensive than you can imagine and a two-three liner answer is not enough to explain it.