Your AI Cat

The Late Nineties Furby

Furby was one of my first encounters with a sensor-based AI. It was a crude device, half plush and half hard plastic. My favourite thing to do with him was swing him by his feet. He would yell, "Whooooooaaaaaaaaaaa……..!!" Occasionally it would belch and then giggle hysterically. But aside from saying funny things, the Furby didn't serve a purpose other than entertainment.

Now, picture a higher quality version of this bizarre creature, but with an AI inside. We're starting to see new products approaching this. But I'm talking something closer to Amazon's Alexa inside of a toy.

Taking Your Cat Everywhere

If you're a cat person, then you've probably commented at least once, "I wish I could take my cat with me." Cat people know this would be disaster. 

What we would see if our cartoon interpretation of a cat, one that can talk, make jokes and have a wacky attitude. What we have yet to see from AI are personalities that make interactions with machines hilarious, like cats with funny captions. Finding the balance between inane banter and entertainment will be difficult. Many personalities will be attempted and rejected. Of the ones that become successful, expect cats to continue to take a major role in human culture.