New Virtual Assistant Is An Anime Girl Trapped In A Coffee Pot

Nothing wrong with this idea. Overall it seems little different from Amazon Alexa, MS Cortana, Apple Siri, or Google Now except for a visual presence and different cultural preferences. I'm curious of the technical elements, such as compliance with various Internet of Things standards as well as the privacy aspect - how much of the data processing is running locally, how much is on a server somewhere, and can it be accessed by some third party and/or has a TOS allowing them to data mine you to hell and back.

Now, as far as the whole "omg people giving up real relationships because of this" - I'll just say that its not likely. These kind of virtual assistants are more likely to be a benefit and desired by many, regardless of gender and age, and have been a staple of science fiction over there for years. Now that it is possible , people will be seeking them out, customized for their needs. Culturally, Japan is in flux thanks to quite a few elements, including the economic uncertainty in the past 15 years, which is affecting people in a huge way. That's the real cause of things like bigdogchris have linked (note that such articles have to be looked at in proper cultural context as well). Virtual assistants are not some indicator of the problem and may actually help provide solutions (ie an aging population could have an AI help remind them of things, help around the house etc..). Japan has a long lived and active older generation, as well as a younger generation that is dealing with the inability of prior cultural mores and expectations to be viable in today's social/economic climate; virtual assistants or other technology aren't the cause, nor are likely to on the whole exacerbate the issues, but it is inevitable that if available they will be used for those seeking a better quality of life.

Edit: Found the homepage for the Gatebox and it is currently on pre-order for delivery through 2017 to both Japan and the USA, with limited release of about 300 units; built to order? The pricing is way higher than I expected at about 300,000 JPY, which is like $2500 USD! The tech specs seem reasonable to start, but don't go into the kind of detail that answers the questions I'd have ,especially for that price. Perhaps in time...
 
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bigdogchris said:
Like the Japanese need another reason to not want to form real relationships.
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Headline "Japans population drastically shrinking!!!!", but click article and shows that its finally stabilizing and would probably take five hundred years at the current rate just to get back to 1960, which would not be such a bad thing on such a massively overpopulated island where people fight for tiny apartments.
 
Ducman69 said:
Headline "Japans population drastically shrinking!!!!", but click article and shows that its finally stabilizing and would probably take five hundred years at the current rate just to get back to 1960, which would not be such a bad thing on such a massively overpopulated island where people fight for tiny apartments.
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But it's not over populated at all. Big cities are because jobs are there.
 
The 70's hit song plays in the background

He was born on a summer day 1951
And with a slap of a hand
He landed as an only son
His mother and father said what a lovely boy
We'll teach him what we learned
Ah yes just what we learned
We'll dress him up warmly and
We'll send him to school
It'll teach him how to fight
To be nobody's fool

Oh what a lonely boy
Oh what a lonely boy
Oh what a lonely boy

In the summer of '53 his mother
Brought him a sister
And she told him we must attend to her needs
She's so much younger than you
Well he ran down the hall and he cried
Oh how could his parents have lied
When they said he was an only son
He thought he was the only one

Oh what a lonely boy
Oh what a lonely boy
Oh what a lonely boy

Goodbye mama, goodbye to you
Goodbye papa I'm pushing on through
 
no cat ears, no cat tail

EEXOc2V.jpg
 
and she didnt call him onii-chan nor goshujin-sama, what a cold heartless machine.
 


I think the idea is neat and would be a great replacement for echo, but f*** you if you think I am going to sit and text the damn thing when it nags me to come home!
 
I wouldn't want one, but I saw the demo earlier and it looks pretty awesome. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for virtual holograms. This may give MS an idea of doing something similar using Halo's Cortana.
 
not even a maid outfit, such a missed opportunity, it boggles the mind really
 
like, not even a japanese schoolgirl uniform, are these people even japanese?
 
Ducman69 said:
So ashamed... would buy to replace Echo. Needs to speak English tho. And maybe have a skin that looks like that Halo AI chick.
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I would too, looks like they'll offer other characters, and it's actually useful since it has home automation integrated (no specs on their website, but it seemed to work in the video, though it doesn't list a zwave or zigbee radio), but it's $3k, and just uses a back projection technique for the avatar. Very cool centerpiece toy for < $500, but only japanese would buy it for the asking price. Microsoft should just make this using a Xbox One with Kinect sensor and sell a million of them.
 
The device itself is pretty cool, it would be sweet to be able to load different people, characters, w/e onto it. Having it text you while you're gone that it misses you... disturbing.
 
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HeavensCloud said:
The device itself is pretty cool, it would be sweet to be able to load different people, characters, w/e onto it. Having it text you while you're gone that it misses you... disturbing.
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Yes, the texting is very weird. I also thought it was weird when it was watching TV with him.
Dunno, I think this looks cool but I felt empty after watching the dude in the video. He seemed in a state of despair and the assistant was giving him life. He comes home to an apartment with the lights on - this makes him look assured. Use geofencing and current home automation systems can already turn the lights on.
I kind of like the current way. The PA's do what you ask and keep quiet the rest of the time. Ever since seeing Star Wars holograms, I can't say I don't think its awesome and would totally be interested. However, I don't want this to be the reason I'm coming home at night.
 
It seems more aware of whats going on which is a good thing. I am finding we only use google home for a baking timer! More autonomous automation would be a good thing.
 
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