It was the stellar moment of the past Google I/O; the moment in which the company demonstrated its Duplex system, capable of making telephone calls from us. In the demonstration, the AI was able to request an appointment in business, for example, and react depending on the issues and the disposition of the person on the other side of the line. Of course, this demonstration was not the moment of glory that Google expected. Instead, it rekindled the debate about the use of AI in its interactions with humans; This led the company to rectify and ensure that the IA would identify itself as such from now on. Not only that, but there are reasons to think that the demonstration was not real, but a simple representation of what would be possible.
Microsoft already has an Artificial Intelligence (AI) that makes phone calls
We imagine the tech giant Microsoft engineers watching the Google conference and yawning because none of that is new. Actually, Microsoft has been working for a while on a similar system that already works with millions of real users. Basically, it is an Artificial Intelligence able to predict what we are going to say next, and have prepared a response accordingly. Moreover, the tech giant Microsoft implemented it in its bot Xiaoice, one of the most popular in China with 200 million users. Thanks to this, the tech giant Microsoft has been able to prove with real users how to improve this technology; and at a conference in London, its CEO Satya Nadella demonstrated its possibilities. Obviously, the voices speak in Chinese, but we have subtitles in English to know what they are saying. The case of Xiaoice’s voice assistant is especially striking because it has managed to gain a foothold in the competitive Chinese market in a very short time; It has achieved this because it is not exclusive to the tech giant Microsoft’s platform, but it is accessible through 16 different methods, including the popular WeChat messaging app.
A “star” that has already made a million calls
Xiaoice has become a star, as it has gained a voice and has started natural conversations with users. Microsoft is showing that it is ahead of Google in this type of development and that it has already taken into account some of its problems; For example, the first thing Xiaoice does in a call is to identify herself. We can start talking to Xiaoice by text message, call us, and continue the conversation using the voice; and being full duplex, two can talk at the same time. Xiaoice has already made a million calls, this way. Perhaps most surprising is that Microsoft is not taking advantage of this technology for other products, such as Cortana. It’s a matter of time, but for the time being, its engineers are focusing on China. So, what do you think about this? Simply share all your views and thoughts in the comment section below.
