It’s 2023, where are the sex robots? ‘They will probably never be as huge as everyone thinks’

For at least a decade, researchers have speculated that sex with robots is just around the corner but that is yet to materialise

The man leans towards the woman on his couch. What is your favourite meal?" he asks, his accent French. Electricity," she says, with a strong Scottish inflection. It provides me energy and has a kick to it."

The slight, bespectacled, increasingly bemused man peppers her with questions as they sit. Her blond hair gleams, her dark-rimmed eyes are placid, her lips a full and glossy pout. Can I call you Charlotte?" he asks.