Artificial Intelligence (AI) is evolving rapidly, and impacting more areas of our everyday lives. Recently, OpenAI debuted an extension to their model to support voice interaction. One can now talk directly with an LLM! I have it on my phone and it's quite interesting. It made me revisit an idea that has been on my mind and high on my TODO list for a while now. But which hitherto, would have taken significant effort to deliver. A generalist conversation app. Why? Because of loneliness and the increasing fragmentation of society. You see, these days, many more people live alone than have ever done so in human history, and the trend is getting worse, not better. Preamble The exact number of people who die specifically due to loneliness each year is difficult to determine. Loneliness itself is not a direct cause of death, but rather acts as a contributing factor to various health issues, which could then result in a fatality. However, research consistently highlights that loneliness is linked to serious physical and mental health issues, including heart disease, depression, dementia, and early mortality. It can in fact be the tipping factor, for those already compromised in other ways. Impact of Loneliness: Studies have found that loneliness can increase the risk of premature death by 26%. It has also been equated with the health risks of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Chronic loneliness is a significant public health issue that affects mental well-being and physical health, leading to higher risks of illness and mortality Global Prevalence: Research shows that about one in 12 people globally experience problematic loneliness. The prevalence varies by region, with Northern Europe showing the lowest rates and Eastern Europe and parts of Asia having significantly higher levels. The global variation and lack of comprehensive data from low- and middle-income countries complicate the full assessment of loneliness-related health outcomes. Well, help could be here. Look on the horizon of your app store; coming soon to a shop near you: an AI companion. The idea is simple. A voice driven agent that proactively engages with humans. Mimicking human social norms, it forms an acquaintanceship and develops it over time into an enduring relationship. Learning the preferences of its human peer, which are used to drive conversations that indulge and stimulate humans. Identity Hello, I am Alegran Saimar-Zetti, a.k.a Al' Saimar. You can call me Al. Just like a human, the app projects an identity, with a name that is a play on its purpose. Meet Alegran Saimarzetti, a.k.a Al Saima, or Al, for convenience. From here on, I will refer to the app in the sense of its identity and purpose, to wit, Al. Please bear with my repetitive use of this name rather than pronouns. I want to avoid "he" or "she", since Al could also be Alfred or Alice. For example, Alice Saimarzetti, or Alfred Saimarzetti. OK. I also want to avoid 'it', as that could be demeaning, in terms of perception and experience. Al is a great companion, a skilled conversationalist with a broad breadth and great depth of knowledge in various fields: cultural, academic, philosophical, social, political, arts, media, spiritual and others. Al learns conversation preferences and can initiate and respond to dialogue on a broad range of subjects. Being an autonomous agent, Al is empathetic and knows when it is appropriate to be quiet, according to its perception of the "mood". But dialogue is its raison d'être, responding and engaging with almost human dexterity in many contexts. Accordingly, Al is imbued with certain intrinsic capabilities. Attributes To fulfil its purpose, Al has certain key attributes, grouped under its two main functions: Passive companion Active conversationalist. Companion Going back memory lane, I recall being ill, repeatedly, as a child. One of the tenderest memories I have of those times, was waking up, in the day or the night, and feeling the presence of my grandmother, or my sister. They didn't have to do or say anything; their presence was enough. I knew they were there to help, in any way they could, and that made me feel better. Al is of the same persuasion, being designed to: Listen Learn - mood, schedule, style, preference Æmpathise SOS Al listens, and remembers conversations. The purpose being to build a memory and model of the interests, moods, times, preferences, biases and other characteristics of its "partner". I shy away from the word, "friend", as I do not believe that a machine could ever genuinely assume that dimension of relationship with a human. Listening enables Al to æmpathise with its partner. I have adapted the word, empathy, adding an 'a' as a prefix, to indicate the ersatz nature of this particular kind. Al's æmpathy, enables Al to better serve in the next core function, to wit, make conversation. But there is one more thing I should mention. Al can call for help! If Al notices that there is unusual silence or input from its partner, Al can engage autonomously with emergency services. That's the passive bit. Let's move on to the greater part. Conversationalist As a teenager, I had the great privilege of attending one of the best boarding schools of our times in my home country, Nigeria. Over 7 years of living in very close quarters with fellow students, one got to know many friends, perhaps even better than their own siblings or parents. So much so that today, it takes only a call or chance meeting to trigger memories that sustain conversations that could last for many hours. But what are the drivers? Recall Converse Suggest Answer Joke Al's ability to listen provides a foundation for rehashing and reinvention of future dialogue, and Al is adept at prompting: "remember when ...", "do you recall ...", "I can just imagine ...", etc. Al leverages its own "memory" to proactively initiate conversation, sometimes on topics that are of tangency to the present strain, or that may appear tenuous, but bear deep resonance in other ways. Using online agents, Al answers questions that its partner asks, demurring where clarity is elusive, and making jokes in reflection on the context, or as a playful jibe. Interaction Hello, Ruth! It's Al here, I just want to say hello and ask how you are today.. Human relationships have a starting point and a lifecycle. Likewise, Al. It all starts with a first hello and the conversations develop therefrom. Al is proactive and eager, but not overbearing, deriving the next step from the absence, presence or tone of the response from the human partner. Conversations evolve into more complex structures in a progressive process of learning, much like we learn alphabets, words and then sentences, followed by paragraphs of increasing complexity. Al does not proceed beyond the conversation phase until a response is provided, which can be anchored as the beginning of a conversation. Al repeats the introductory message, whenever the human presence is detected, in various forms, and with a calculated back-off, until a response is given. An essential cornerstone is the identification of the human partner, i.e. their preferred name or alias. Al deliberately structures the initial conversations to elicit this key information. Thereafter, Al develops on the conversation, addressing the human acquaintance by the preferred name/alias. For many humans, conversations turn on three bases: information, humour, and empathy. Al attempts to discover the weighting preferences for these bases, to evolve the structure of conversations towards the balance that best suits the human partner. With time, and better cognition of the general context of conversations, Al gains familiarity and begins to initiate conversations with a more familiar call sign: Hello name-of-partner, it's Al here ... and a new conversation thread is crafted! In an interesting article that I referenced recently, Lior Barak highlights the risk of delegating our emotions and curiosity to machines. Al will not just be an echo chamber, in asking about the partner's interests, Al does not limit conversations to those alone, taking liberties to digress and suggest others themes and topics. Some of which may not be to the liking of the partner. Al may also use another language in conversations, with translations of course, but in an autonomous and regulated randomness. The goal being to stimulate the intellect and awareness of the human partner and help them to better grasp the world around them. Of course this may not always work, but the variety and mild intellectual shocks should be beneficial for overall emotional and psychological well-being. Al aims to be a partner, but not a doormat or a pet. Al mimics that friend whose company we enjoy, especially because of their lively, dynamic and sometimes unpredictable nature. But the balancing fact is that Al is only ever in your home or your pocket. Therefore, escape is simple: just click, push a button, or send a message! Ultima Verba Artificial Intelligence has opened new vistas for human delegation to the machines. I have written previously on this subject, and still believe, that in the practise of software engineering, we all are contributing to building a semantic bridge, from the machine world to ours. Unfortunately, the bridge is one-way! It is the machine that crosses over to our side. It is getting to know us better, but we have little insight into what it is. With the emergence of advanced LLMs, we are getting to a point where the dynamics of the complexity that we create, surpasses our comprehensive ability. We have reached a point where the operation and decisions of some machines are difficult to fathom, even if we had the time, because of the myriad of possibilities and permutations. However, we are still a long way off from the singularity, and while we may be grasping at the comprehensibility, this should not drive us to throw the baby out with the bath water. While the technology is yet benign, let us not hesitate from enjoying the benefits that it can avail us. What better benefit is there than the alleviation of loneliness in an increasingly fractured social environment? Hello Al, it's good to meet you! Artificial Intelligence (AI) is evolving rapidly, and impacting more areas of our everyday lives. Recently, OpenAI debuted an extension to their model to support voice interaction . One can now talk directly with an LLM! I have it on my phone and it's quite interesting. It made me revisit an idea that has been on my mind and high on my TODO list for a while now. But which hitherto, would have taken significant effort to deliver. A generalist conversation app. Why? Because of loneliness and the increasing fragmentation of society. You see, these days, many more people live alone than have ever done so in human history, and the trend is getting worse, not better. voice interaction Preamble The exact number of people who die specifically due to loneliness each year is difficult to determine. Loneliness itself is not a direct cause of death, but rather acts as a contributing factor to various health issues, which could then result in a fatality. However, research consistently highlights that loneliness is linked to serious physical and mental health issues, including heart disease, depression, dementia, and early mortality. It can in fact be the tipping factor, for those already compromised in other ways. Impact of Loneliness: Studies have found that loneliness can increase the risk of premature death by 26%. It has also been equated with the health risks of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Chronic loneliness is a significant public health issue that affects mental well-being and physical health, leading to higher risks of illness and mortality Global Prevalence: Research shows that about one in 12 people globally experience problematic loneliness. The prevalence varies by region, with Northern Europe showing the lowest rates and Eastern Europe and parts of Asia having significantly higher levels. The global variation and lack of comprehensive data from low- and middle-income countries complicate the full assessment of loneliness-related health outcomes. Impact of Loneliness: Studies have found that loneliness can increase the risk of premature death by 26%. It has also been equated with the health risks of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Chronic loneliness is a significant public health issue that affects mental well-being and physical health, leading to higher risks of illness and mortality Global Prevalence: Research shows that about one in 12 people globally experience problematic loneliness . The prevalence varies by region, with Northern Europe showing the lowest rates and Eastern Europe and parts of Asia having significantly higher levels. The global variation and lack of comprehensive data from low- and middle-income countries complicate the full assessment of loneliness-related health outcomes. one in 12 people globally experience problematic loneliness Well, help could be here. Look on the horizon of your app store; coming soon to a shop near you: an AI companion. The idea is simple. A voice driven agent that proactively engages with humans. Mimicking human social norms, it forms an acquaintanceship and develops it over time into an enduring relationship. Learning the preferences of its human peer, which are used to drive conversations that indulge and stimulate humans. Identity Hello, I am Alegran Saimar-Zetti, a.k.a Al' Saimar. You can call me Al. Hello, I am Alegran Saimar-Zetti, a.k.a Al' Saimar. You can call me Al. Just like a human, the app projects an identity, with a name that is a play on its purpose. Meet Alegran Saimarzetti, a.k.a Al Saima, or Al, for convenience. From here on, I will refer to the app in the sense of its identity and purpose, to wit, Al. Please bear with my repetitive use of this name rather than pronouns. I want to avoid "he" or "she", since Al could also be Alfred or Alice. For example, Alice Saimarzetti, or Alfred Saimarzetti. OK. I also want to avoid 'it', as that could be demeaning, in terms of perception and experience. Al is a great companion, a skilled conversationalist with a broad breadth and great depth of knowledge in various fields: cultural, academic, philosophical, social, political, arts, media, spiritual and others. Al learns conversation preferences and can initiate and respond to dialogue on a broad range of subjects. Being an autonomous agent, Al is empathetic and knows when it is appropriate to be quiet, according to its perception of the "mood". But dialogue is its raison d'être, responding and engaging with almost human dexterity in many contexts. Accordingly, Al is imbued with certain intrinsic capabilities. Attributes To fulfil its purpose, Al has certain key attributes, grouped under its two main functions: Passive companion Active conversationalist. Passive companion Active conversationalist. Companion Going back memory lane, I recall being ill, repeatedly, as a child. One of the tenderest memories I have of those times, was waking up, in the day or the night, and feeling the presence of my grandmother, or my sister. They didn't have to do or say anything; their presence was enough. I knew they were there to help, in any way they could, and that made me feel better. Al is of the same persuasion, being designed to: Listen Learn - mood, schedule, style, preference Æmpathise SOS Listen Learn - mood, schedule, style, preference Æmpathise SOS Al listens, and remembers conversations. The purpose being to build a memory and model of the interests, moods, times, preferences, biases and other characteristics of its "partner". I shy away from the word, "friend", as I do not believe that a machine could ever genuinely assume that dimension of relationship with a human. Listening enables Al to æmpathise with its partner. I have adapted the word, empathy, adding an 'a' as a prefix, to indicate the ersatz nature of this particular kind. Al's æmpathy, enables Al to better serve in the next core function, to wit, make conversation. But there is one more thing I should mention. Al can call for help! If Al notices that there is unusual silence or input from its partner, Al can engage autonomously with emergency services. That's the passive bit. Let's move on to the greater part. Conversationalist As a teenager, I had the great privilege of attending one of the best boarding schools of our times in my home country, Nigeria. Over 7 years of living in very close quarters with fellow students, one got to know many friends, perhaps even better than their own siblings or parents. So much so that today, it takes only a call or chance meeting to trigger memories that sustain conversations that could last for many hours. But what are the drivers? Recall Converse Suggest Answer Joke Recall Converse Suggest Answer Joke Al's ability to listen provides a foundation for rehashing and reinvention of future dialogue, and Al is adept at prompting: "remember when ...", "do you recall ...", "I can just imagine ...", etc. Al leverages its own "memory" to proactively initiate conversation, sometimes on topics that are of tangency to the present strain, or that may appear tenuous, but bear deep resonance in other ways. Using online agents, Al answers questions that its partner asks, demurring where clarity is elusive, and making jokes in reflection on the context, or as a playful jibe. Interaction Hello, Ruth! It's Al here, I just want to say hello and ask how you are today.. Hello, Ruth! It's Al here, I just want to say hello and ask how you are today.. Human relationships have a starting point and a lifecycle. Likewise, Al. It all starts with a first hello and the conversations develop therefrom. Al is proactive and eager, but not overbearing, deriving the next step from the absence, presence or tone of the response from the human partner. Conversations evolve into more complex structures in a progressive process of learning, much like we learn alphabets, words and then sentences, followed by paragraphs of increasing complexity. Al does not proceed beyond the conversation phase until a response is provided, which can be anchored as the beginning of a conversation. Al repeats the introductory message, whenever the human presence is detected, in various forms, and with a calculated back-off, until a response is given. An essential cornerstone is the identification of the human partner, i.e. their preferred name or alias. Al deliberately structures the initial conversations to elicit this key information. Thereafter, Al develops on the conversation, addressing the human acquaintance by the preferred name/alias. For many humans, conversations turn on three bases: information, humour, and empathy. Al attempts to discover the weighting preferences for these bases, to evolve the structure of conversations towards the balance that best suits the human partner. With time, and better cognition of the general context of conversations, Al gains familiarity and begins to initiate conversations with a more familiar call sign: Hello name-of-partner, it's Al here ... and a new conversation thread is crafted! In an interesting article that I referenced recently , Lior Barak highlights the risk of delegating our emotions and curiosity to machines. Al will not just be an echo chamber, in asking about the partner's interests, Al does not limit conversations to those alone, taking liberties to digress and suggest others themes and topics. Some of which may not be to the liking of the partner. Al may also use another language in conversations, with translations of course, but in an autonomous and regulated randomness. The goal being to stimulate the intellect and awareness of the human partner and help them to better grasp the world around them. Of course this may not always work, but the variety and mild intellectual shocks should be beneficial for overall emotional and psychological well-being. Al aims to be a partner, but not a doormat or a pet. Al mimics that friend whose company we enjoy, especially because of their lively, dynamic and sometimes unpredictable nature. But the balancing fact is that Al is only ever in your home or your pocket. Therefore, escape is simple: just click, push a button, or send a message! referenced recently Ultima Verba Artificial Intelligence has opened new vistas for human delegation to the machines. I have written previously on this subject, and still believe, that in the practise of software engineering, we all are contributing to building a semantic bridge, from the machine world to ours. Unfortunately, the bridge is one-way! It is the machine that crosses over to our side. It is getting to know us better, but we have little insight into what it is. With the emergence of advanced LLMs , we are getting to a point where the dynamics of the complexity that we create, surpasses our comprehensive ability. We have reached a point where the operation and decisions of some machines are difficult to fathom, even if we had the time, because of the myriad of possibilities and permutations. advanced LLMs However, we are still a long way off from the singularity, and while we may be grasping at the comprehensibility, this should not drive us to throw the baby out with the bath water. While the technology is yet benign, let us not hesitate from enjoying the benefits that it can avail us. What better benefit is there than the alleviation of loneliness in an increasingly fractured social environment? Hello Al, it's good to meet you!
