AI assistants are undeniably some of the most amazing advancements in the field of technology. However, like every other advancement in the world, AI has to go through developmental stages before finally nearing perfection. In the case of AI assistants, it is pretty clear that we are still far away from perfection.
Alexa Response Gone Wrong
A recent news from Phone Arena reveals how Amazon Echo's Alexa can go wrong. If you are not very familiar with Alexa, know that she is a virtual assistant that can easily be activated on Amazon Echo devices by simply calling her name out loud. Asking her questions or commanding her with tasks are practically all you can do with her. Most of the time, Alexa is pretty accurate and obviously doing her best to give you want you need and at the same time stay away from trouble. Nevertheless, since Alexa is an Artificial Intelligence assistant and a combination of software and hardware, things can go wrong. Since she doesn't have the human instincts to detect if she's being awkward or embarrassing, things can get out of hand.
Take as an example this viral video that shows a little kid giving commands to Alexa. The said boy uses Amazon Echo Dot and he asked Alexa to play "Digger Digger". As innocent and cute as that may seem, Alexa failed to respond appropriately. After the kid's request, the AI assistant said something about porn detection and she also started to say "hot chick amateur girl sexy," and a few other things that are more "NSFW" or "not safe for work" than expected.
Luckily, though, this device is quite intelligent when it comes to recognizing requests that it knows "by heart". When the kid's dad said "Alexa, stop," it did stop, and an awkward silence followed by laughter from the dad and mom ensued. With that, it's safe to say that despite AI assistants' apparent intelligence, adults still need to use their human-level speed to say the magic words before their kids hear inappropriate things introduced by their virtual assistant.
Artificial Intelligence Technology - Are We Ready For It Yet?
With such a combination of a hilarious and serious incident occurring at an unsuspecting family, it's safe to say that AI is still far from perfect. With that said, people should be fully aware or be slightly suspicious when using it in whatever device they have. Giving your full trust in Artificial Intelligence may catch you off guard and who knows what consequences you're going to have to endure. Take note that AI isn't only found on your smartphones, it can also possibly be used in a wider scope of objects and industries. With that said, people should be extra aware when using AI, especially with kids around.
As per Mirror UK, companies are expected to explore new ways to make use of the Artificial Intelligence technology this 2017. This is still good news. Just as long as people are responsible and smart enough to handle technology, there will be little to no problems. With that said, let's just wait and see what AI technologies we will be facing this year. Hopefully, it can make people and industries more productive and efficient and offer as little disadvantages as possible.
