ChatGPT's New Virtual Assistant: A Step Too Far?
ChatGPT has announced the arrival of its new virtual assistant, Annie, but with one small detail that has left users feeling a little unsettled... Annie's face is brought to life through AI-generated technology. Unlike other virtual assistants that use disembodied voices, Annie has been created to bridge the gap between humanity and artificial intelligence.
What Makes Annie Stand Out?
As a real-time video assistant, Annie is able to communicate in a very human-like way. She is even capable of responding to users with animated facial expressions and lip movements, which are generated in real-time to match the speech she is producing. According to the Reddit post by qwertyflagstop, Annie can act as a tutor on a vast range of topics, help you practice that big speech, or just chat with you about your day. She can also check the weather and perform very basic web searches.
Some people who have used Annie have been impressed by her ability to respond to questions and provide relevant information based on their interests. If you spend enough time with ChatGPT, as I have, you can hear the bot's specific ‘tone’ come through Annie when she speaks. But unfortunately, this doesn't lie well with everyone.
Is It Too Much?
While ChatGPT's intentions are no doubt good-hearted, the arrival of Annie has left some people feeling a little freaked out. Her artificial human-like qualities were designed to improve the user experience, however, this realistic quality has some people feeling uncomfortable.
There is a psychological phenomenon known as the uncanny valley, which refers to the point at which an artificial creation becomes so realistic that it produces an eerie feeling of discomfort. Annie certainly falls into this category. While her face art isn't terrible, it's not entirely realistic either. Her face is always calm, and she flickers between slight expressions when she speaks, which can make some people feel a little uneasy.
Simply put, communication between a robot and a human is vastly different from a normal human conversation. Humans deviate from the main topic, interrupt each other, and ask follow-up questions. With Annie, you ask a question, and she replies with a stream of information. It highlights how false the interactions are when there's a human avatar. In some cases, this is helpful, especially while asking questions via text. While in other situations, it may be viewed as impersonal, where it's easier to spill your guts out in a DM than in a face-to-face conversation.
The Future of Virtual Assistants
As an early version of an AI-based virtual assistant, there are certainly some bugs and hitches that need to be ironed out. However, as popularity grows, we're sure that we'll see further updates and video call features popping up in no time.
Overall, it's clear that ChatGPT has a passion for developing AI technology that is designed to help people and improve their daily lives. The arrival of Annie is a significant step forward for the company, and as with any new technology, there will be some transitionary discomfort. But only the future will tell if Annie and other similar virtual assistants will become mainstream, or are just a passing fad.
