Digital Assistants Working Hard to Be More Human
July 8, 2018
Whether you use Alexa, or Siri, or Cortana, or a host of other AI-infused digital assistants, the producers of that technology have something in common: they want those electronic personalities to be more human. Interesting moves are being made in this world to make that happen, according to a recent Inquirer story, “Microsoft Snaps Up Semantic to Make Cortana Seem a Bit Less Robotic.”
According to one Microsoft exec:
“Combining Semantic Machines’ technology with Microsoft’s own AI advances, we aim to deliver powerful, natural and more productive user experiences that will take conversational computing to a new level.”
The story continued:
“Google, of course, has Duplex which can make natural sounding voice calls on your behalf. It has also suggested it is looking into the idea of giving Assistant a back story.”
However, this comes with a consequence. As Wired pointed out, as these assistants get more comfortable with inflection and reading our voices, the opportunity for manipulation becomes eerily more present. These near-human tools are not to that point yet, but we don’t doubt that it’ll arrive soon. Who wants to type when one can talk, think a human is on the other end of the connection, and be so much more efficient.
Patrick Roland, July 10, 2018
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