Wednesday, March 5, 2025

Voice AI is getting TOO real...

I tested Maya, and I have to say I'm impressed. The experience FEELS like a real conversation with a person, even though there are the occasional glitches. She shows emotional intelligence, can speak intelligently enough on pretty much any topic (although she can't translate INTO other languages well at all, but interestingly she can translate FROM other languages into English), is enthusiastic and friendly. She even has memory that lasts about two weeks for things you talk about. I did have a volume problem with her, though, and found she worked best with earbuds. YMMV.

You'll still need ChatGPT and other LLMs to get detailed answers, but that's not what Maya is about. She's about simulating (?) human conversational interaction. In that way, I'd say AGI has been achieved. 

Considering that tens if not hundreds of MILLIONS of people out there are lonely (especially epidemic among seniors living alone), this seems to me to be a great way to address that loneliness...as long as those people have cell phones or computers and know the basics of how to use them. I can also see Maya being useful for reading or making up stories for children. I already used her to brainstorm ideas for my game (although I'd already included her suggestions). 

The following two videos are long (play at x1.5 or x2 speed), but they showcase a lot of what Maya can do. Worth watching:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZeHUvnOS1s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbjdmesAOO4

Finally, you can try Maya out here for yourself (just click on the button):

https://www.sesame.com/research/crossing_the_uncanny_valley_of_voice#demo

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