Hardware

The race to develop iPhone in the AI ​​era begins

AI gadgets like Meta’s new Ray-Ban smart glasses (L) and Humane’s AI Pin are changing the way humans interact with technology.
meta advertising.Victor Virgil/Getty

  • Tech companies are trying to cash in on the AI ​​hype by developing AI-focused devices.
  • Some technology leaders see this gadget as the iPhone of the AI ​​era, a way to own hardware used to interact with AI.
  • A true iPhone successor could be the tech industry’s golden goose, but past attempts have failed.

Get ready for a new wave of AI-powered technology hardware.

Rather than looking like the thin glass rectangles we’re used to in the smartphone era, these cutting-edge gadgets will take on bold new shapes as tech companies experiment with new ways to interact with AI. Become.

The race continues as generative AI tools like ChatGPT, OpenAI’s conversational AI chatbot, take the world by storm. Tech companies are looking to capitalize on that hype through new devices that incorporate AI capabilities. Tech leaders are calling this phenomenon the “iPhone moment.”

The key question facing all of them is: Will personal AI gadgets ultimately become the next big thing, replicating the seismic shift that the iPhone brought to the tech industry?

Some big names seem to be betting on it.

Just last week, Mark Zuckerberg announced the latest generation of Meta’s Ray-Bans Meta smart glasses. The smart glasses allow the wearer to talk to the glasses through Meta’s conversational assistant, Meta AI, and receive information in real time, which can then be used to live stream footage. Facebook and Instagram.

“It would be pretty wild to have meta-AI on your glasses and be able to talk to people all day long,” Zuckerberg told The Verge.

Zuckerberg said the AI ​​glasses are a stepping stone to Meta’s ultimate goal: a world filled with holograms that can talk.

“Humans will be interacting with all of these things as holograms, and AI will be interacting with them as holograms,” Zuckerberg said, referring to Meta’s vision of smart glasses.

A model wears Humane’s AI pin at the Coperni runway show during Paris Fashion Week 2023.
Victor Virgil/Getty Images

Three days later, startup Humane’s prototype AI pin device was spotted on several runway models during the Paris Fashion Week runway show. It’s a wearable, badge-like device with a camera and speakers but no screen.

Imran Chaudhri, co-founder of Humane and former Apple designer, spoke on stage at a TED Talk in May about the gadget’s features, including the ability to project call details onto your hand and the pin’s ability to translate English to French. demonstrated various science fiction-like features. Play his AI-generated voice and use the “catch up” command to summarize messages and calendar invites he missed.

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AI Ping promises to create an invisible device that will reimagine human-technology interaction and allow humans to return to “what really matters”: a “new capacity for being.” That’s true, Chaudhry said.

“Why search your phone when you can hold something and ask questions about it?” Chaudhry said in a TedX talk. “The result is that it feels as if the whole world is your operating system.”

Jony Ive, Apple’s former design chief who led the design of the iPhone, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will create dedicated AI hardware with “a new form factor that is not constrained by a rectangular screen.” It is even reported that they are co-developing a device.

Top names also attract top funding. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son is reportedly considering pouring $1 billion into the venture.

Although the mysterious device has not yet been officially announced, Altman told Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff that soon, “it will become unthinkable not to have intelligence integrated into every product and service.” ” he said.

a Game of Thrones battle for AI supremacy

Given the capabilities of AI, some technology experts believe that AI-powered personal devices could become the technology that replaces the iPhone and become a new computing device essential to our daily lives. That’s what I think.

Brad Stone, author of two books on Jeff Bezos and Amazon, recently said: “More than 15 years have passed since the introduction of the iPhone, and ChatGPT and other generative AI services may soon form the basis of a new kind of hardware device and an entirely different type of interaction between humans and computers. It’s an interaction.”

Dan Ives, a technology analyst at Wedbush Securities, said tech leaders are betting big on AI hardware, in part because hardware could play a “major role” in the evolution of AI. He said there might be.

“Altman, Nadella, Zuckerberg, Cook and Jassy all know that hardware is the gateway to AI consumer technology,” Ives told Insider. “Software is the heart and lungs of AI, and hardware represents the arms and legs.”

In fact, Ives said, this “Game of Thrones” battle for AI supremacy has already “spurred major investments, partnerships, and product launches” as Big Tech continues to push the envelope on AI. I believe it is now or never to take advantage of the arms race.

He predicts that 2024 will be the “launching pad” year for AI.

It would be difficult to peek into people’s iPhones

But others are a little more skeptical about whether AI devices will one day become as popular and innovative as the iPhone.

“Personally, I don’t think a separate category called ‘AI devices’ is likely to survive long term,” says University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee professor, technology history researcher, and co-author of AI Devices. said Thomas Haig. His 2021 book titled “A New History of Modern Computing.”

The big question is whether technology companies can convince smartphone users to opt for new AI-focused hardware devices rather than simply using apps like ChatGPT.
Null Photo/Getty Images

Haig told Insider that AI is “first and foremost a brand,” a marketing tactic that companies have historically used to raise money and promote research. And they argue that iPhone users may continue to stick with established gadgets like Apple’s. He is developing a new version of the iPhone with AI capabilities.

“Siri has long been a core feature of the iPhone, and local processing of voice and other AI-branded activities have been built into the app in recent years, justifying the need to upgrade smartphone hardware annually. ‘ said Mr Haig. “Therefore, in the short term, it seems likely that AI trends will strengthen the dominance of smartphones.”

Although the “small, lightweight, energy-efficient technology” underlying smartphones has “opened up opportunities for other products,” such as smartwatches with fitness tracking, personal AI devices are “the ultimate technology.” “In general, we will fail many times before we succeed,” he believes. “Given the failure of some wearable devices such as Google Glass.

Technology analyst Ives would agree with Haig. He said AI hardware innovations are “along with software the golden goose for tech companies over the next decade,” but he doesn’t think all of them will be successful.

However, despite AI’s great capabilities, smartphones may still be easier to use than AI devices for the average consumer, and it may take time for AI personal devices to gain public traction. Yes, Haig said.

After all, there is a ChatGPT app available for iPhone and Android.

“Honestly, carrying a phone around isn’t that much of a burden, and no matter how much AI pixie dust you sprinkle, there are still many things that are easier with a phone than glasses, a watch, or earbuds.” said Haig.

“I would give mainstream smartphones an edge for at least another 10 years.”


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