AI Pin: "A Projection" or "Prototype of the Future"

Original source: Hard AI

Image source: Generated by Unbounded AI

Laser projection, real-time translation, gesture manipulation… The AI storm swept in, and Ai Pin, which was “born” in a new form, set off a heated discussion in the technology circle.

Some people think that the AI Pin is a “born” AI hardware with portability that surpasses that of mobile phones, pads, and headsets, while others believe that the AI Pin is an unrealistically bad innovation.

So, is the AI Pin “only one projection” or “the prototype of the future AI device”?

A few days ago, Om Malik, a partner at venture capital True Ventures and founder of the technology blog GigaOm, wrote a long article explaining his observations and thoughts on AI Pin.

According to Malik, AI Pin brings a very different “new concept of personal computing”. He added that in the future, people will no longer need apps, but will be accustomed to interacting with machines in the form of direct conversations to do the work that needs to be done through various applications today. The emergence of AI Pin has opened up such a new way to interact with technology:

"When the iPhone was introduced, there was no shortage of skepticism about the concept of the touchscreen as an interface. I still remember the strong resistance people had to the virtual keyboard.

Fifteen years later, no one is surprised by the obviousness of smartphones anymore. In a few years – thanks to artificial intelligence, voice will become part of the reality of our digital interactions.

It won’t be the only way, but it will be the one that will be important. ”

Of course, while emphasizing the huge potential of AI Pin, Malik did not deny a series of challenges faced by the product, such as privacy protection, application scenario construction, and customer service support.

The following is the main content of Malik’s article, everyone enjoy~

01 “Completely Different Concepts of Personal Computing”

If you just think of Humane’s AI Pin as another new device, you might be dismissive of it. However, when you put it in the context of the evolution of computing, you will find that we are starting to think about computing in a different way.

We know that computing is always evolving—about every fifteen years, computers become smaller, more powerful, and more personalized. We’ve evolved from mainframes to workstations, desktops, laptops, and smartphones. Fifteen years have passed since the iPhone started this revolution.

Smartphones have changed personal computing by making it “ubiquitous”. As we know, personal computing is evolving again, this time to be reshaped by artificial intelligence, which makes us rethink how we interact with information. Today, there are many converging trends – faster networks, more powerful chips, and the proliferation of sensors, including cameras.

Smaller, more energy-efficient, more powerful, and more capable chips mean that we can now make smaller, more powerful devices. Today, faster networks can instantly deliver the power of the cloud. What’s more, advances in large language models (LLMs) and natural language processing (NLP) mean that we no longer need the old methods of acquiring and interacting with information.

For the average person, AI is really a mass of augmented intelligence that allows us to cope with the complexity of an increasingly digital world. Artificial intelligence emerged to make personal computing more personal.

It’s fertile ground for reinventing the personal computer. We’ve seen what Apple and Meta have to say about the next generation of personal computing devices, and Humane is coming up with a very different concept of personal computing for the post-smartphone era.

02 “Dialogue: The Next Generation of Interaction”

As you can see, I’m looking forward to AI Pin. I understand the development and evolution of this device, but I don’t actually test it in depth. I’m not talking about a review here, but based on my impressions after limited interaction with the device.

Before I dive in, I want to make it clear that I don’t have any financial stake in Humane, either personally or as a partner at True Ventures, I’m just excited about their bold and great ideas. It’s these bold “moonshots” that keep me excited about technology. While a big company like Apple may launch new hardware (and software platforms), it’s hard to see a startup with such big ambitions.

In my past life as an investor, I invested in a wearable camera startup called Narrative that had a similarly grand vision, but was ultimately hindered by the reality that it was “too early”. Perhaps, that’s why I appreciate more than other skeptics what the Humane team has built with AI Pin. For me, this is the next step in the evolution of computing.

"We are ushering in a new market. Chaudhri, the company’s co-founder, said in an interview. "We’re committed to creating the best interface – using artificial intelligence to dramatically improve your computing experience. ”

It’s not about replacing current devices, it’s about introducing a new way to interact with technology, and in the process, advancing personal computing. Imran and Bethany have brought together a legion of former Apple talent to build this future.

So, what’s next for personal computing? So far, we’ve used mobile apps to get what we want, but the next step is to talk to the machine. At least for me, an app is a workflow set up to perform a specific task.

Tidal, for example, is the “workflow” that provides us with music. Calm or Headspace is the workflow for getting “meditation content”. In the not-too-distant future, these workflows will be freed from the limitations of application wrappers and become executables, and our natural language will act as a scripting language for machines to create highly personalized services (or applications) that are presented to us in an experiential way.

In the near future, we will no longer need the wrapper of the application. Instead, we will interact with digital services through an invisible interface. Do I need to create a playlist in the music service when I just want the music service to play a certain type of music?(By the way, this is the number one use case for Amazon Alexa.) Alexa, Google Home, and Siri are some of the technologies that have laid the groundwork for this kind of interaction. Our children are communicating with machines – and for them, it’s natural to use sound to get the machine done.

In my opinion, the evolution from an app to an “experience” means that we are witnessing the end of the App Store.

"It’s not about declaring app stores obsolete, it’s about moving forward because we have the ability to do new things. Chaudhri argued. "The idea of Humane is to allow us to use these workflows (i.e., apps in smartphones) through its myriad interfaces (mostly voice). ”

I believe in the future, and why, because I’ve seen the change before.

When the iPhone was launched, there was no shortage of skepticism about the concept of a touchscreen as an interface. I still remember the strong resistance people had to the virtual keyboard. Fifteen years later, no one is surprised by the obviousness of smartphones anymore. In a few years – thanks to artificial intelligence, voice will become part of the reality of our digital interactions. It won’t be the only way, but it will be the one that will be important.

03 “Opportunities and Challenges Coexist”

One of the challenges for any new product, especially one with AI at its core, is that it will be met with great skepticism and suspicion. Chaudhri admits this: "You can’t control the environment in which your ideas are generated or the environment in which they are ready to be put into use. ”

The biggest challenge for Humane is the privacy issue of AI Pins. “At Humane, our principle is that you should own your data as much as possible,” Imran noted, noting that Humane takes unique measures to protect user data when interacting with third-party services, anonymizing data to ensure privacy, and preventing the reconstruction or analysis of personal data. Still, I doubt it - not about his intentions, but about the history and needs of his partners.

What’s more, it’s a whole new world, and I’m not entirely convinced that Humane has completely solved the privacy challenge. Of course, the AI Pin comes with a circle of trust – when it’s in use and facing someone, it lets the person opposite you know it’s active by opening the green ring. A red ring indicates that it is closed. It’s a little too subtle if you ask me. It feels a little disturbing and creepy. Or maybe I’m too old and stubborn.

Even if you ignore these challenges, founders and teams still have a long way to go. Just like any other startup, now that the product is ready, Humane faces the challenge of figuring out how to grow from a product to a company and then to a growing business.

Companies still need to convince people that the $700 sticker price and $25 monthly subscription fee are worth it. And if that’s not enough, it also has to address some tedious and confusing things like customer support, moreover, all while trying to stay ahead of the inevitable copycats.

While others may not see the potential yet, and despite these challenges, I’m excited about Humane, and even for any startup that wants to build this new and bold future. Why? Because they are trying to live up to the immortal quote of the famous designer Charles Eames:

"At the end of the day, everything is connected – people, ideas, objects, and so on. – and the quality of the connection is the secret of the quality itself, and for its own sake. ”

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