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It might sound like the plot of a 1980s sci-fi film - but sex robots may actually be the biggest tech trend of 2016.

The popularity of the artificially human machines has grown directly in tandem with their realism.

And not only will people be having intimate relations with them - they may even fall in love with them too.

Dr Helen Driscoll, a leading authority on the psychology of sex and relationships, said 'sex tech' was already advancing at a fast pace.

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Dr Driscoll, from the University of Sunderland says that robotic, interactive, motion-sensing technology is likely to become more and more central to the sex industry in the next few years.

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"We tend to think about issues such as virtual reality and robotic sex within the context of current norms.

"But if we think back to the social norms about sex that existed just 100 years ago, it is obvious that they have changed rapidly and radically.

Robophilia may be alien now, but could be normal in the near future as attitudes evolve with technology.

"As virtual reality becomes more realistic and immersive and is able to mimic and even improve on the experience of sex with a human partner; it is conceivable that some will choose this in preference to sex with a less than perfect human being."

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Dr Driscoll adds: "People may also begin to fall in love with their virtual reality partners."

It's not a new prediction, but the technology has improved at a quicker rate than may have been expected.

Back in 2007, artificial intelligence researcher David Levy from the University of Maastricht told LiveScience that people could be marrying robots - and consummating their vows - by 2050.

Chinese migrant workers buy £14,000 sex dolls:

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Although it might not appeal at first, he said, "once you have a story like 'I had sex with a robot, and it was great!' appear someplace like Cosmo magazine, I'd expect many people to jump on the bandwagon."

In his PhD thesis, Intimate Relationships with Artificial Partners, Levy stated that the more human-like robots become in terms of personality, function and appearance, the more likely they are to form romantic partners for real people.

"It may sound a little weird, but it isn't.

(Image: Getty)

"Love and sex with robots are inevitable."

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Dr Ian Pearson even wrote in a report produced for online sex shop Bondara: “Brothels and strip clubs will soon include robots and they will be a specific fetish for some people, as well as a potentially cheaper replacement for real-life interaction.”

According to Dr. Pearson, advances in sex tech will provide opportunities for those that otherwise wouldn't have them.

His report marks 2050 as the year that human/robot sex overtakes human/human.

And the technology is ready to go this year.

Meet Gabrielle, a real looking prosthetic male doll:

Matt McMullen, the CEO of "love doll" manufacturer RealDoll, is busy making a new toy (the first one is called Harmony) that will blink, open its mouth and even have a chat with you.

The ultimate aim is to create a doll that appears to behave as if 'she' enjoys the act of sex.

"We might very well be launching a new company devoted solely to the development of integrating AI with realistic sex toys, as well as potential VR applications," McMullen said in a Reddit ask-me-anything.

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Meanwhile, another robotics expert has launched a campaign to ban the development of sex robots in the UK.

Dr. Kathleen Richardson, a senior research fellow at De Montfort University in Leicester, has called the development of sex 'bots a "disturbing" trend that needs to be stopped.

"Sex robots seem to be a growing focus in the robotics industry and the models that they draw on - how they will look, what roles they would play - are very disturbing indeed," she said.

Real love dolls from Japan:

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"We think that the creation of such robots will contribute to detrimental relationships between men and women, adults and children, men and men and women and women."