What do autonomous vehicles and companion robots for the elderly have in common?
Technologies that affect the ways in which we move are fundamental to our day-to-day lives, so it should come as no surprise when mobility tech crosses over into other spaces. Intuition Robotics has developed an AI agent that proactively creates human relationships, whether in an automotive context or to address geriatric loneliness.
On the latest episode of Anything that Moves, Meir and Dor Skuler, CEO at Intuition Robotics break down the changing relationship between humans and machines and how OEMs can leverage technology to transform the in-car experience.
Here are some highlights from the conversation:
How Intuition Robotics’ technology allows its AI assistant to create human relationships
“When we started, it had nothing to do with mobility. It was about helping adults reduce loneliness and allowing them to remain independent for longer. When we started this journey, we found that in order to solve this problem, we actually need to redefine the way humans and machines interact. That’s why we created an AI agent that proactively creates relationships based on trust and empathy with the human subject.”
“If [Alexa or Google Assistant] has all of the information it needs, it will just execute every time a command is invoked. If it’s missing information — like did you mean turn off the light in the kitchen or living room? — it will ask you to fill in the blanks. But that’s not a relationship.”
“We’re talking about an entity that has internal motivation. It doesn’t sit idly by waiting for commands. ElliQ calculates at any given time based on its understanding of the world around you, the human: is it a good or bad time to interrupt? Then based on its understanding of your state, the world around you, and everything it knows about you this leads to it making a decision.”
How contextual AI matters for carmakers
“People have been driving the same cars the same way for decades and all of a sudden there’s new technology being inserted, whereby we’re no longer driving the car, rather the car drives together with us.”
“I’m not talking about Level 5 autonomy, I’m talking about ADAS, L2, L3. It takes forever for new features to be introduced to cars and even longer for users to trust and learn how to use them properly. As autonomy becomes increasingly sophisticated users begin questioning how they can express concerns to the vehicle that controls and impacts our safety and lives.”
“OEMs need to create an experience that’s differentiated or else they risk becoming commodities. Brands need to create an extension between what people are seeing on TV and the day-to-day experiences they’ll have in the car. Is the car for family moments, road trips, a workspace, or simply for performance? At the end of the day, the in-cabin experience for passengers in the backseat is uncurated and not differentiated between competing OEMs.”
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This article is based on Episode 4 of the Anything that Moves podcast. Check it out on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
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