AI assistants in personal spaces
Conceptual roots in Science Fiction
Having computers that respond to our voice in order to carry out tasks or answer our queries has been a popular concept in science for many decades now, with the idea imagined in popular TV series such as Star Trek.
In science fiction, computers that act as personal assistants controlled through vocal commands are ubiquitous and part of the character's surroundings. The exhibit a high level of situational awareness, and are able to use sensors to understand the environment, both inside, and outside, in order to advise its users. To answer queries, the computers are able to reference a large bank of information to provide user choice.
Little did screenwriters know, nearly all of the concepts they imagined in a science fiction TV series set in the 23rd-24 century will happen by the year 2017, nearly 300 years earlier.
Many of today's smart home features were first conceptualized and inspired by Star Trek. The above is a video of the "computer" through the 6 different Star Trek series.
Today's personal assistants and smart homes
While there is still a large gap between the AI assistants imagined in science fiction and the services offered by Google Home, and Amazon Echo, the gap is closing fast. Today, compatible smart home appliances can be connected to a speaker system (as seen in the Google home video on the right), and be controlled vocally. They can respond to basic queries by through speech recognition, and utilizing the vast network of information indexed through search engines like Google. However, they are far from ubiquitous in the home as the speaker acts as the interface in which the commands could be made, and thus limits usage to areas near the device.
Personal assistants in the home are currently in its infancy stages, and there is a long way to go before it can resemble what its creators have in mind for how they can revolutionize our way of living.
Google home, as showcased at Google I/O in 2016
Today's personal assistants and smart homes
As our homes serves as our personal space, where we rest and relax after a long day of work, where our children could grow and learn, and also a place that shields us from the conditions outside, it is natural that the bar is set high for habitat based AI assistants. An utilitarian AI assistant can respond to our questions, help us send and read messages, and book appointments and events, but a revolutionary AI should be able to take on more human roles that would truly enhance our standard of living. Imagine a smart home assistant that has the ability to read your feelings, and adjust your surroundings accordingly. Today, there are parts in place that could lead to such advances made in the near future. (watch the video on the left)
A well designed AI that operates our homes can also have the potential to reduce our energy bill, and by extension reduce the amount of energy consumed by cities, by regulating our temperature and lighting to our needs. It should be able to sense our presence in the house and potentially act to alert emergency services if the house undergoes a security breach, or if its inhabitants become sick or incapacitated due to illness. A well connected and advanced AI in the home may also be able to prepare food and provide care and entertainment for the young or the senile, potentially reducing the need or cost for child or elderly care.
An AI that can accomplish the above tasks are still years, and potentially decades away from being cheap enough to be mass produced and adopted, but today in 2017, the seeds are sowed, and it will only be a matter of time before we see the fruits of AI research and how it can change our living spaces.
Can the EQ radio act as an emotional sensor for an AI assistant in our home, we think so.
aiport- a start up in the smart home market
Our exit poll: Are you comfortable with AI in your home?
When it comes to personal assistants that utilizes AI, many of us imagine a technology that will make our lives easier for us by removing us from having to complete menial tasks. Instead of walking over to flip on a light switch or to pre-heat an oven, we can simply tell the AI to do it. But in the future, the AI that lives in our home will be able to do much more than that. It will understand your preferences, be able to read our moods and your emotions, and in many ways, be able to act as a companion to you as well as perform your commands. What if you were living alone, would you seek an AI companion in your home? Would you be comfortable having technology replace so many of the functions you might have needed to do yourself for most of your life?