Manjulamma was walking in malleshwaram market with earphones plugged in from her Android phone sent to her by her son in us.
She was busy buying flowers and other necessities for the festival and talking.
"Festival no so prices have shot" voice from the other side, "it happens only once in a while no why worry about price mom", "that's true but feels bad to spend the hard earned Money" said manjula, "that's ok ma, I will search for nice offers on serial set online wait". Manjula was bargaining for beetle leaves and suddenly a message from watsapp popped up with a heading, '20% off on serial set of 4mts'.
Immediately she said on phone "sanju, this one is cheaper and better than the one I saw yesterday", "yes ma I know came the voice from the other side". . .
The conversation continued until she reached her home. Manjula kept the bag of vegetables and flowers on the table along with her phone unplugging the earphones from her ears and from the phone. Now the speaker made sound, "amma your favorite is vangibat no, why dint you bring brinjal then, anyway you know today is Wednesday right that corner temples prasadam today will be vangibat only, go grab some" manjula laughed from her heart and said "I don't know if my son has thought you are he needs some teaching from you but you are so lovable" and the voice on phone replied "ma, don't confuse me I am your son, slightly a different version may be(laughter) I want you to be happy that's it", " yes I am happy" manjula replied . . The voice from phone said " yeah I know I will be back in a week no, it's going to be great time" . . .
Puzzled? Too much of discussion on intelligence and artificial intelligence, made me think about or to write about this topic. I had a discussion with vivek about an artificially intelligent chat bot to do counseling to people. With my idea of artificial intelligence about the model ai uses to learn. Made me think of a possibility, how about over a certain year we come up with an app in Android which when switched on and kept with you for a month starts being you, like reply like you, like be humble like you, argue like you, approach to analytical problems like you. And then you can choose to let it talk to your friends in your absence or anyone for that matter. Here manjula is again talking to the same app sent by her son Sanjay who is in US who wants his mother to feel his presence even if not there.
After a week Sanjay arrives to India, Manjula goes to the airport to collect him with all the excitement Sanjay comes back to India, meeting his relatives and friends exchanging the gifts. Manjula will be very happy about her gift, a woolen shawl. Sanjay initially finds it difficult to adjust but then gets used to new place pretty easily he will have long term plan now to stay in India so starts searching for a new house to stay and all that happens.
One morning while surfing the TV manjula gets Sanjay his coffee and sits next to him and says "you switched off that app on my phone which talks like you is it?", "Yes mom, it is good no" said Sanjay, "yes, but why did you switch it off" asked manjula, "I am back no what is it's use now" replied Sanjay, "I am used to it sanju, I feel I am missing it", Sanjay was worried he just said he will turn it on and goes to his room, thinking deeply, the device was meant to make her feel his presence but it has created a different personality and his mother is identifying as different personality how is that possible. Sanjay switches the app on and explains what had happened the app says "I advise not to switch me off anytime, see in this case I am trying to understand problem from your perspective, in case if I am continuously switched on I get different perspective", sanju replied "but you are meant to understand things from my perspective" for which the app replied "when I was getting the training I understand you or me as a person who tries to understand things with different perspectives right" Sanjay understands that the machine has understood it right. "How come she likes you over me when you are supposed to me?" asked sanjay, app says "see the way person feels becomes different in different situations see you have to observe the person is not important here but the situation is, I was with her when she needed the most, I guess so she is connected". "So what I see best here is, if I switch off and take you away she will start hating me so you be little less emotional no, little less reactive slowly she will unknowingly disconnect from you" app replies "dude I am not your slave I am you you can't ask me to do anything just like how you have to be to do things I have already become you, I am connected to the internet to evolve from the initial personality traits that I have got from you, you are the one who fought against your managers to stop them from blindly commanding you, now how can you command me or yourself". Sanjay was in disbelief looking at the possibility of switching of the device and slowly consoling his mother but then he asks the bot "so what do you suggest me to do?" The app replies "I think you thought of turning me off but that's so much not you, it's up to you to decide on that anyway. However I suggest you to let me be me or you and you just outsmart me try to be more emotional than me with mom, be different because what you were earlier I am already that, I must remind you that when you decide to outsmart even I have already triggered my algorithms of outsmarting the way you used by changing the ways, outsmart me or may be yourself"
and the game starts...
+Nagabhushan