Claims are that "AI" can be a companion and help reduce loneliness. So I thought I'd give Lumo a try. No, I’m not lonely, but I do lack people to talk to in person… curse of moving to a new state with a near zero population!
If you aren’t familiar with Lumo, it is Proton’s new simulated intelligence that respects privacy. As they put it: “An AI assistant should empower you, not exploit you for your data. That’s me, Lumo.”
Further they state: “AIs from Big Tech are built on harvesting your data. But Proton is different. We keep no logs of what you ask, or what I reply. Your chats can’t be seen, shared, or used to profile you.”
Privacy good! Intelligence lacking!
Unfortunately they didn’t include Grok (my favorite simulated intelligence) in their comparison.
My attempt at conversation was a failure. It's as poor of a conversationalist as some humans I know. (responds but rarely initiates a thought) After a few prompts, I thought I’d fall back to a human “go to” topic: weather!
It can't even get the weather correct:
"Here’s the current weather for Aberdeen, South Dakota:
Temperature: 16.9 °C (about 62 °F)
Here’s the short-term outlook for Aberdeen, South Dakota (today):
High temperature: around 46 °F (≈ 8 °C)"
Huh? So it's 62 now and going to reach a high of 46? Absolutely pathetic compared to directly looking at a weather website (which aren't real great themselves but usually are okay for a general idea of what today's weather will be).
If AI had intelligence, it would be able to figure out that 46 is lower than 62 (something an elementary school child can do with ease), thus that would be going down and not a “high” temperature. (by the way the Forca website predicts a high of 77 not “46”)
If “AI” is going to become a companion, it will need to learn (and remember) about the person it is talking with. I’m sure that will come in the near future, but it’s not here now!
As it is, Simulated Intelligence is as bad as the humans it mimics, it’s the center of it’s own universe and doesn’t pay attention to the person it is talking to.
Keep this secret though, just between us, I’d like my investments in “AI Stocks” to continue skyrocketing. It’s so much fun to be “rich” on paper!
I think I’ll stick to talking to myself. Maybe I should get at cat?
I typically like the "sci-fi" movies and shows involving AI 'companions' and whatnot. "Bicentennial Man" staring Robin Williams is probably my favorite by far.
HOWEVER, I'm not really a fan of the current AI being developed. I am leery of the possible hidden agendas behind a number of the developers. I simply don't trust them to TRULY have my best interests in mind.
I don't see the kind of AI that is depicted in the movies and on TV being available for a long time. I'm not sure it will even be available in my lifetime. UNTIL there is a development of AI that is honestly secure and private, I don't want anything to do with it. I don't care how long it's been since I 'spoke' to another person (I'm online a lot and talk with a number of people via texts and so forth regularly}. If I'm THAT desperate for human interaction I can go to a local business (coffee shops are good for talking to a variety of people).
Good luck with your experiment. Keep us posted on whether the machine actually LEARNS as you go. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.
Actually sounds like a fun challenge to question this AI when you know he's wrong, then ask him to please explain why he's so off-base. Sounds like with his flaws he's much more human than my new best friend forever named Grok!