Imran Chowdhury and Bethany Bongiorno, who worked at Apple in the past, have unveiled their new project after founding a startup called Human. In brief video segments from a TED conference, one of them presents what he thinks is a futuristic device that will replace our cellphones and other connected watches.
A device designed entirely around artificial intelligence
The ChatGPT revolution has not spared anyone, but we are only at the beginning of the potential applications of artificial intelligence. Imran Chaudhary thinks his company has found a way to use AI to come up with a new type of device:
“Today I want to share with you […] A new type of wearable device designed entirely around artificial intelligence. He is completely autonomous. You don’t need a smartphone or any other device to connect it. »
As you can see in the video clip below, Chaudhary wears the product on his shirt. It is a small box with different sensors. Unlike a classic voice assistant like Siri or Google Assistant, the latter is not triggered by voice, but by pressing the box. It can then be interacted with in different ways.
The first is obviously to talk to him. For example, we hear the device translate a sentence Chaudhry speaks from English to French using its own voice model created by artificial intelligence. A process reminiscent of the instrument David Guetta used to imitate Eminem’s voice.
Tea @Humanity Wearable English->French AI translation with your own voice… Wow. (sound on)
Video credit @ZarifAli9
Read an exclusive on Humanity Wearables: https://t.co/TYRmtYPSYI pic.twitter.com/cmAWEU8DFS
— Ray Wong (@raywongy) April 21, 2023
The device is also equipped with a camera capable of projecting information, as seen here on Chowdhury’s hand, although interacting with this interface still seems a little blurry.
I got a video @Humanity ’s AI-powered wearable projector in action (clipped from video @zarifali9 Feel me #TED2023 By @imranchaudhri)
It sounds crazy! pic.twitter.com/DDOfTMCxH5
— Ray Wong (@raywongy) April 21, 2023
Another use case is presented when the device scans a bar of chocolate and reads its composition to provide information regarding the owner’s food intolerance or allergy.
@HumanityA device that helps you decide what you can and can’t eat by knowing your preferences and dietary restrictions. pic.twitter.com/PFwEAsNxDI
—Michael Mofina (@MichaelMofina) April 21, 2023
Many unanswered questions
As with all product presentations, their designers have full control over the elements they choose to display. In this sense, Chowdhury’s demonstration is perfectly mastered and relatively impressive. But does this “projector” with an AI-enhanced voice assistant really have the potential to replace our smartphone? For Human’s co-founder, there’s no doubt: “AI will drive the next leap in device design”.
Chowdhury also argues for the lack of screens, which he helped popularize over 20 years at Apple by working on products like the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch:
“For the human-technology relationship to really evolve beyond screens, we need something completely different. […] The future is not placed in your hands or on your face. The future of technology may be almost invisible. »
If the latter accidentally comes into contact with the eyes, the weight of the device, its connection system or the danger (or not) of the projector should now be known. The question of displaying more complex information, such as a map or itinerary, also arises depending on the project surface.
to read : Google will integrate conversational AI into its search engine and it will change everything
Note that some people don’t use their smartphones’ voice assistants because they don’t want others to hear their requests or conversations. Under these conditions, the new human device is more like a voice assistant integrating AI than a product capable of fully replacing our devices with screens.
