For all the reasons that this might not take off, what a thrill that people are trying something new–and it looks really nicely designed too.
I think this is easy to dismiss at first glance, but I genuinely believe they’re trying to think about a new mode of interaction. The idea that “the computer will disappear” is probably accurate in the long term. Except for content delivery (reading, photos, movies), most tasks we achieve via computers and phones do not strictly require a screen. It’s probably a good thing if computers did a better job of getting out of the way, and stop so loudly disrupting human interactions.
Whether this will be the solution is unclear; the privacy/creepiness angle is still real with an outwards-facing camera. Latency and battery life limitations might be too significant. The cost will be a non-starter for many (it is for me).
But I’m still impressed because there was a vision here. The conversational interface has never worked before for many reasons, but that does not mean it cannot work in principle, or that the ideal implementation would not be spellbinding. I’m glad they’re trying. Also, the laser display is neat!
Walmart, Costco and other companies rethink self-checkout, some stores removing them (www.cnn.com)
Tesla Cybertruck just revealed... (youtu.be)
Did Your Spotify Wrapped Place You In Burlington, Berkeley, or Cambridge? You May Be Gay (www.them.us)
Okta Says Hackers Stole Data for All Customer Support Users (www.bloomberg.com)
A Spanish agency became so sick of models and influencers that they created their own with AI—and she’s raking in up to $11,000 a month (fortune.com)
Broadcom lays off VMware employees after closing its $69 billion acquisition of the company (www.businessinsider.com)
The Pentagon is moving toward letting AI weapons autonomously decide to kill humans (www.businessinsider.com)
Breaking: Sam Altman to return as CEO of OpenAI (www.theverge.com)
Former OpenAI Exec Announces ChatGPT Voice Is Now Available to All (gizmodo.com)
USB worm unleashed by Russian state hackers spreads worldwide (arstechnica.com)
Microsoft preparing San Francisco offices for OpenAI employees, even as chaos lingers (www.cnbc.com)
Secretive White House Surveillance Program Gives Cops Access to Trillions of US Phone Records (www.wired.com)
Former Apple designers launch $700 Humane AI Pin as smartphone replacement (www.cnbc.com)
Republican senator Josh Hawley calls for TikTok ban, cites influence on Israel-Hamas war opinions (www.nbcnews.com)
Mint is shutting down, and it’s pushing users toward Credit Karma (www.theverge.com)
Social Media Algorithms Warp How People Learn from Each Other (www.scientificamerican.com)
Google quietly ditched plans for an AI-powered chatbot app for Gen Z (www.cnbc.com)
Called “Bubble Characters,” the app featured cartoon-like characters engaging in conversations with young users and even offering advice
Tracking AI-enabled Misinformation: Over 300 ‘Unreliable AI-Generated News’ Websites (and Counting), Plus the Top False Narratives Generated by Artificial Intelligence Tools (www.newsguardtech.com)
The Tragic Tale of the Internet (video) (youtu.be)
Just released video about how the internet has completely changed for the worse. Fascinating discussion. What are your thoughts on this?
The Reddit moderators who coordinate many celebrity AMAs will no longer do so, The mods of r/IAmA are stepping back (www.theverge.com)