In early 2026, a groundbreaking paper titled "Artificial Intelligence and the Psychology of Human Connection" was published in Perspectives on Psychological Science . Authors Ryan L. Boyd and David M. Markowitz introduced a transformative framework known as MIRA . As product designers, we often concern ourselves with friction, conversion, and aesthetics. However, this paper signals a paradigm shift: AI is no longer just a tool we use; it is a relationship we experience. For