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Cloud Privacy Toys

"Hello Barbie" Listens To Children Via Cloud 163

Posted by samzenpus from the can't-talk-now-the-doll-is-listening dept.
jones_supa writes For a long time we have had toys that talk back to their owners, but a new "smart" Barbie doll's eavesdropping and data-gathering functions have privacy advocates crying foul. Toymaker Mattel bills Hello Barbie as the world's first "interactive doll" due to its ability to record children's playtime conversations and respond to them, once the audio is transmitted over WiFi to a cloud server. In a demo video, a Mattel presenter at the 2015 Toy Fair in New York says the new doll fulfills the top request that Mattel receives from girls: to have a two-way dialogue. "They want to have a conversation with Barbie," she said, adding that the new toy will be "the very first fashion doll that has continuous learning, so that she can have a unique relationship with each girl." Susan Linn, the executive director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, has written a statement in which she says how the product is seriously creepy and creates a host of dangers for children and families. She asks people to join her in a petition under the proposal of Mattel discontinuing the toy.
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"Hello Barbie" Listens To Children Via Cloud More

"Hello Barbie" Listens To Children Via Cloud

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  • Should A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer.... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Art Popp ( 29075 ) * on Monday March 16, 2015 @05:52PM (#49270797)

    ...be a book or a doll? In an age where Internet is thick on the ground, no contest.

    So, will a weak-AI owned by a for-profit company inspire little girls to have this conversation:

    "Mom! The Raspberry Pi 2 is out! It's got four ARM7 cores! My 3D printer would print a pair of ruby slippers in under an HOUR! Please!"

                or this one?

    "Mom! If I want to be a size zero, I need Kellog's Brand Nutrigrain Bars!"

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by Qzukk ( 229616 )

      Speaking of a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, what happens when Nell tells Barbie that her mommy's boyfriend is a bad man?

    • Re:Should A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer.... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by kheldan ( 1460303 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @09:29PM (#49272135) Journal
      We should be so lucky as to live in a world where something like the YLIP really existed, even with all the conflict and problems in The Diamond Age.. but we don't live in that world. We live in a world where it would just blather on about nonsense, meanwhile everything the little girls say will be analyzed by market researchers for better ways to profit from them, and likely have Barbie say things to indoctrinate little girls into being 'better consumers' (read as: PESTER MOM AND DAD TO BUY YOU MORE STUFF) and for all we know brainwash them into being who-knows-what. Then there's the possibility of someone hacking into them and making Barbie say obscene things or things intended to mislead little girls into doing something horribly, horribly wrong, or who knows what. The hell with shit like this, make it go away. It's not the technology that's bad, it's the fact that you can't trust corporations or anyone else with it these days. In fact let's get rid of Barbie entirely, it's a shitty concept that's at the root of all sort of malodorous crap concerning little girls and their development anyway.
    • Well, the Primer was (iirc) a custom product for a plutocrat's (grand?)daughter. It had no ulterior motives, it was simply there to provide a companion and an education for the young girl. I think this is by far the most important criterion for a primer - that it not be influenced by any for-profit company.

      I like the book form-factor but that's mainly just because I like books. :)

    • ...be a book or a doll? In an age where Internet is thick on the ground, no contest.

      So, will a weak-AI owned by a for-profit company inspire little girls to have this conversation:

      "Mom! The Raspberry Pi 2 is out! It's got four ARM7 cores! My 3D printer would print a pair of ruby slippers in under an HOUR! Please!"

      or this one?

      "Mom! If I want to be a size zero, I need Kellog's Brand Nutrigrain Bars!"

      wait a minute, are those the only two options?

      neither seems quite right to me

  • I hope this is the type of dialog we will hear (Score:5, Funny)

    by robbyb20 ( 651479 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @05:56PM (#49270847) Homepage

    Lisa [playing with Malibu Stacy]: A hush falls over the general assembly as Stacy approaches the podium to deliver what will no doubt be a stirring and memorable address. [pulls Stacy's cord]

            Malibu Stacy: I wish they taught shopping in school!

            Lisa: [groans, pulls Stacy's cord again]

            Malibu Stacy: Let's bake some cookies for the boys!

            Lisa: Come on, Stacy. I've waited my whole life to hear you speak. Don't you have anything relevant to say? [pulls cord]

            Malibu Stacy: Don't ask me, I'm just a girl. [giggles]

            Bart: Right on! Say it, sister.

            Lisa: It's not funny, Bart. Millions of girls will grow up thinking that this is the right way to act....that they can never be more than vacuous ninnies whose only goal is to look pretty, land a rich husband, and spend all day on the phone with their equally vacuous friends talking about how damn terrific it is to look pretty and HAVE A RICH HUSBAND!!!!

            Bart: Just what I was going to say.

  • commercials and young kids (Score:5, Insightful)

    by jbolden ( 176878 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:03PM (#49270913) Homepage

    I remember when my daughter was about 2.5-4 commercials were unbelievable effective. Even those commercials that targeted the mother watching with the kid had an impact and my daughter would often get upset we didn't have the right products. I'd love to just see a ban on advertising for kids under 10, and public financing.

    • Re:commercials and young kids (Score:5, Informative)

      by itzly ( 3699663 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:20PM (#49271057)

      Can you imagine how effective would it be if the kid's talking doll suggested buying some other toys or accessories ?

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by jbolden ( 176878 )

        Yes. I could easily see it making things much worse.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Nyder ( 754090 )

        Can you imagine how effective would it be if the kid's talking doll suggested buying some other toys or accessories ?

        Or telling them to kill their mommies & daddies?

        Think of the parents!!!!

      • I see your children have played neither Skylanders nor Disney Infinity.

    • Re:commercials and young kids (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Archangel Michael ( 180766 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:21PM (#49271063) Journal

      OR, you know ... good parenting, not allowing them to watch TV except when appropriate

      OR you know ... teaching your kids about how commercials work, trying to get them to buy useless toys and crappy "food" products.

      Why did you allow your kids to be bombarded with commercials at an age where they couldn't cope?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by jbolden ( 176878 )

        Why did you allow your kids to be bombarded with commercials at an age where they couldn't cope?

        Because there were compensating advantages to those shows. Life is about grey and tradeoffs. And her wanting particular products and getting upset about it while a negative was not a game changer. Your ID is low enough that you are about my age. I'd assume you know this and should be sounding like a teen that hasn't made these tradeoffs.

        • Re:commercials and young kids (Score:4, Insightful)

          by Archangel Michael ( 180766 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:46PM (#49271253) Journal

          Life is about grey and tradeoffs.

          Good parenting is about knowing the tradeoffs and finding a solution that doesn't require you into compromising "compensating advantages" and getting "Upset" daughters (have them). TV was and is Optional. I chose to give up some conveniences for the sake of raising my kids better than the marketers wanted me to raise them.

          At age two - three, there is NOTHING on TV worth getting a brat at the store. Read them a book. Play with them in the sandbox. Teach them YOUR values, one of mine was, "you're more important to me than plopping you in front of a TV for the next three hours".

          • Life is about grey and tradeoffs.

            Good parenting is about knowing the tradeoffs and finding a solution that doesn't require you into compromising "compensating advantages" and getting "Upset" daughters (have them). TV was and is Optional. I chose to give up some conveniences for the sake of raising my kids better than the marketers wanted me to raise them.

            At age two - three, there is NOTHING on TV worth getting a brat at the store. Read them a book. Play with them in the sandbox. Teach them YOUR values, one of mine was, "you're more important to me than plopping you in front of a TV for the next three hours".

            when I was a kid I watched Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood and Reading Rainbow and Winnie the Pooh.

            trade offs is compromise which is how we got stuck with voting for only 1 of 2 people-- because we believed the lie that "voting for someone besides those two is throwing your vote away" instead of correctly being told "the only way to throw your vote away is by voting for someone you don't agree with"

      • OR you know ... teaching your kids about how commercials work, trying to get them to buy useless toys and crappy "food" products.

        That sounds a lot like uninformed optimism.

        Adults who know how commercials work are still swayed by them.

        Also, when the majority of adults can't effectively cope with commercials, how can you in any way say that kids should be effectively able to cope?

        What I heard you say is "Don't let kids watch TV ever, unless you can remove the commercials." You may not have meant it that way,

      • Being a good parent you restrict access to the toy(s) and here is the conversation at school with the school supplied Barbie. "I hate mommy and daddy, they are so mean to me. They won't get me a talking Barbie and banned me from using it at my friends houses too! *sob*" Barbie: "Really, should I report them and get you new parents?"

        Anyone who has raised a child knows that kids say some pretty mean things growing up. It's part of growing up, and covered in every book I read on psychology for raising ki

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by antdude ( 79039 )

      That is what marketing does. How about not watching the commercials and the media?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by chihowa ( 366380 )

        I've always been a little astounded at the general acceptance of marketing campaigns that are directed toward children. It's hard to see how the existence of teams of highly educated and extremely well funded adults who's job is to most effectively manipulate the minds of young children for profit is anything other than profoundly unethical and malevolent.

        Targeting adults with marketing is pretty sleazy, but targeting little kids seems more than a little fucked up.

    • Anecdotally my daughters (4.5 & 2) have a built in ad blocker. It is actually something quite interesting to watch. The unfortunate thing though it what they love to watch are almost ads anyway.

      My eldest loves watching the DCTC videos on youtube, which are essentially toy unboxing videos. Given half a chance she will spend all day watching them. From this she has an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of My Little Pony. When an ad comes on though she is instantly hitting the 5 second skip button. no mat

      • This is something of a trend in TV right now. More people streaming and using DVRs to skip has lessened the value of traditional advertising. Producers responded by turning to alternative forms of advertising - mostly product placement.

        • I've yet to see / notice product placement in the stuff my daughters watch (mainly animated stuff). But there is a HELL of a lot of merchandising for the shows.

        • My son is 2 and had pretty much never seen an advertisement. We have netflix and hulu, and the only things he'd really seen were things like Sesame Street and Curious George on Netflix. No ads. Well one day mommy and daddy happened to be watching a rare show on Hulu, and an ad comes on, and my son points at it and yells "I DON'T LIKE THIS! I DON'T LIKE THIS SHOW CHANGE IT!" I laughed.

    • Or you could just not show TV with advertisements to your kids. You know, parental moderation? The wife and I did it. My kids had to grow up without Disney TV etc, but today I think they are better off for it.

  • Hello, Talky Tina (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Radical Moderate ( 563286 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:08PM (#49270973)
    Any predictions for how many days it takes for this to get hacked and we have Talky Tina [youtube.com] epidemic?

    • Re: Hello, Talky Tina (Score:5, Funny)

      by Jason Levine ( 196982 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:20PM (#49271055) Homepage

      A thousand points to the person/group that does a "positive hack." Instead of the obvious string of obscenities, have Barbie embrace geekiness and the maker culture instead of being a brainless bimbo.

      Little girl: "Barbie, do you want to go shopping?"
      Barbie: "Sure. I could use a new soldering iron. Also, my favorite comic book has a new issue out. I can't wait to read what happens this issue!"

      • Re: Hello, Talky Tina (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Skidborg ( 1585365 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:29PM (#49271135)
        Funny how "positive" in this case seems to mean simply "more like me".

        • Actually using a soldering iron isn't anything like me, personally, as I've never used one. I was aiming for "encourage the little girl to use her mind instead of acting like brainless bimbo is a life goal."

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by OzPeter ( 195038 )

        A thousand points to the person/group that does a "positive hack." Instead of the obvious string of obscenities, have Barbie embrace geekiness and the maker culture instead of being a brainless bimbo.

        Talky Tina would be a great hack. And she is certainly not a brainless bimbo

      • Buying a soldering iron and some comics is somehow not going shopping? Or it's a better kind of shopping because it's a tool and a comic book? Geek elitism strikes again girls! You're nothing if you're not soldering and reading about super-heroes!

        Mattel shouldn't be listening in to children's playtime conversations for any reason - but this doesn't mean that there's something wrong with playing with barbie and talking about nice shoes. This does not make you a "brainless bimbo". It makes you a child.

        • If you want a doll that can listen, speak, and learn, available technology embedded in a doll cannot be adequate. The choices are a program on a home computer that's always on, or an internet connection.

          It's creepy if you're untrusting (which may well be valid), but there aren't really many viable options to achieve what they claim they're trying to do.

      • A thousand points to the person/group that does a "positive hack." Instead of the obvious string of obscenities, have Barbie embrace geekiness and the maker culture instead of being a brainless bimbo.

        Little girl: "Barbie, do you want to go shopping?" Barbie: "Sure. I could use a new soldering iron. Also, my favorite comic book has a new issue out. I can't wait to read what happens this issue!"

        Hey, since real world girls refuse to become geeks despite all the countless programs everyone is coming up with, I guess we do have to make some mechanical ones ...

  • made the wrong mod, posting to remove it

  • adult v child (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    How come it's creepy with Barbie but not with siri, google, smart tvs, xbox kinect, or the myriad of other things that constantly monitor us when we think we are alone?

    • Re:adult v child (Score:4, Interesting)

      by brantondaveperson ( 1023687 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:31PM (#49271153) Homepage

      They're creepy too. It's worse when you're bugging children's playtimes, but we shouldn't accept any of those things in our lives.

      • Re:adult v child (Score:4, Insightful)

        by mjwx ( 966435 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @10:24PM (#49272339)

        They're creepy too. It's worse when you're bugging children's playtimes, but we shouldn't accept any of those things in our lives.

        Often I find kids will eschew high tech toys in favour of a simple cardboard box. I gave my nephew a simple electronic drum kit for Christmas (it was to help with developing his co-ordination and to give him better musical tastes than his parents, so there was some thought into the gift) but he spent the entire day running around with the box it came in and having a ball. You wouldn't have been able to pry that box off him with a crow bar.

        You dont need to get high tech toys for kids, they'll enjoy lego, blocks, matchbox cars and the like just as much as I did when I was a kid. Hell, one of the best things you had to play with was a large refrigerator box.

        • Re:adult v child (Score:4, Insightful)

          by cazzazullu ( 645423 ) on Tuesday March 17, 2015 @06:44AM (#49273861)

          I gave my nephew a simple electronic drum kit for Christmas

          As a parent, and speaking for most parents in the world, I wish upon you a house full of confetti and glitter, a sick goat locked up in your car, and from now on you're only allowed roughspun wool underwear.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by crtreece ( 59298 )
            Don't worry, you'll get your chance for payback when you have the opportunity to give gifts to your nephews/nieces/grandkids. It's the circle of (family) life.
    • because wont SOMEONE Think of the CHILDRENN!!!!! It really is that simple

    • Because if they tell us to unlock the back door in the middle of the night, or to get into that nice man's car, we probably won't do what they say?

  • Slashdot Overrun by Luddite Barbarians (Score:5, Interesting)

    by SuperKendall ( 25149 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:24PM (#49271093)

    From the story summary calling it creepy, to just about every initial response being negative, I cannot help but shed a tear for the love of technology that used to permeate these hallowed (now hollow) halls.

    Having a doll that can talk back to you, that can intelligently respond to what you are asking and learn what you want to talk about is not creepy. That is actually really interesting. It could be really cool.

    Is there potential for abuse? Sure. Would it be nice to have a clear off switch so it doesn't pick up things it shouldn't? Sure. But that doesn't make it a bad idea, or mean we should kill the baby in the cradle, and see how it actually turns out.

    Can the rabid un-thining pitchfork-wielding crazed mobs that roam Slashdot now please take a step back and think about the future at least once?

    • Re:Slashdot Overrun by Luddite Barbarians (Score:4, Interesting)

      by MtHuurne ( 602934 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @07:04PM (#49271383) Homepage

      Having a doll that can talk back to you, that can intelligently respond to what you are asking and learn what you want to talk about is not creepy. That is actually really interesting. It could be really cool.

      The creepy part is not a doll that listens, it is the manufacturer listening as well. An interactive doll that operates without an internet connection would be a great piece of technology.

      Can the rabid un-thining pitchfork-wielding crazed mobs that roam Slashdot now please take a step back and think about the future at least once?

      Technology in itself is neither good nor bad, it all depends on how you use it. Embracing every new development out of love for technology is just as irrational as rejecting it out of fear.

      • The creepy part is not a doll that listens, it is the manufacturer listening as well.

        Not if you understand the technology, because you know that in order to do the first, it ALSO has to do the second.

        The other way it can be phrased, which is more accurate and less creepy, is to say a SERVER processes the audio data in order to form a response. That's not creepy; it's necessary - it says nothing about humans or "the company" (whatever that means) listening in.

        Technology in itself is neither good nor bad, it

        • It's nessicary at the current level of sophistication and viable price point. If computational capacity were cheaper, it'd be possible to put more of the doll's systems onboard. Maybe not everything, as any half-reasonable conversation is going to need a huge knowledge engine behind it, but the voice recognition at least, and some of the simpler query processing.

        • The creepy part is not a doll that listens, it is the manufacturer listening as well.

          Not if you understand the technology, because you know that in order to do the first, it ALSO has to do the second.

          It doesn't require a super computer to do voice recognition, as demonstrated by the $75 retail price (which would cover a few years of server-side processing, unless the article failed to mention a mandatory subscription) and a game like There Came An Echo [youtube.com]. My guess is that a modern ARM processor would be able to handle it just fine. If the processing would drain the battery of the doll too quickly, it could be done in an in-home base station (plug server, for example) that communicates over local WiFi. The

          • My guess is that a modern ARM processor would be able to handle it just fine.

            Come on. That gets you a "DOLL ON" kind of command recognition, not a natural language conversation with a little girl that learns over time. Do you have any idea how out of reach that would be even for any modern smartphone to do completely standalone?

            It says a lot that all technologies like Siri are wholly cloud based and can do just about nothing without network access. If they could work locally, they would.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by narcc ( 412956 )

          Not if you understand the technology, because you know that in order to do the first, it ALSO has to do the second.

          Why can't it happen locally? We've had "learning" chatter bots and local voice recognition for ages. Worst comes to worst, have the kid read the doll a story for the training portion and you're good to go.

          Really, I don't see why we couldn't even cram the whole thing on the doll. With a suitably restricted vocabulary, you wouldn't even need a training portion.

          • Why can't it happen locally? We've had "learning" chatter bots and local voice recognition for ages.

            Yes, which is why that would suck compared to what they are trying to do - have a more intelligent conversation.

            Point a five year old at Eliza sometime and see how long they maintain interest.

            Really, I don't see why we couldn't even cram the whole thing on the doll.

            Perhaps ten years from now we can. Right now, not if you want to make it work at all well and not be terrible, plus about 10x more expensive tha

      • The creepy part is not a doll that listens, it is the manufacturer listening as well. An interactive doll that operates without an internet connection would be a great piece of technology.

        Is the manufacturer listening? There's at least one data analysis team lead listening, but is that person doing anything more than tuning the algorithm? Are they looking for keywords to be able to sell additional products, or partner with other sellers?

        Technology in itself is neither good nor bad, it all depends on how y

        • "Are they looking for keywords to be able to sell additional products, or partner with other sellers?"

          Maybe, maybe not. Part of the issue is that we don't know. Worse, they could make a decision retroactive: Even if they aren't doing so now, they could decide to in future and process the logs of previous conversations. What we have here is a technology with a strong potential for abuse, and a clear commercial incentive for abuse. This should raise some alarms. The solution should be to set up some means - p

        • Do we have any hard facts other than the unfounded assumptions of the masses that this information is being somehow data-mined?

          I have no information about this doll other than the article, so no hard facts. I do consider it very likely it will be data-mined in some way, since that would actually be useful for improving the product. See my other response [slashdot.org] above.

          So, is a manufacturer that respects privacy while delivering a requested product evil? Or is it just fear of the unknown operating here?

          There is no proof they will respect privacy and there is no proof they won't. But when it comes to large companies, I am no longer willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. That's not fear, it's cynicism. I don't like having that attitude, but I can't justify any other at

    • Re:Slashdot Overrun by Luddite Barbarians (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Eravnrekaree ( 467752 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @08:27PM (#49271853)

      One of the concerns is that what the child says will be recorded and mined for nefarious purposes, such as using it to profile them. Another concerning thing is the concern that it could be used to manipulate them psychologically in various ways. Parents have no way of knowing what this damn thing could blurt out to their children next. Its not impossible that this thing could allow the cloud to get inside the childs head and use responses to cause psychological responses. Unlike the interaction with the child with one of their real, living peers, what is behind this doll is a massive corporation with huge analytical capabilities and the potential for an ulterior motive to try to get inside and and manipulate the users of this doll. Children are more vulnerable than adults due to the fact they are still in a period of rapid development and learning.

    • Can the rabid un-thining pitchfork-wielding crazed mobs that roam Slashdot now please take a step back and think about the future at least once?

      Not until you take off your rose-colored glasses and look at the real world for a change!

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • We have seen abuse over abuse stappled over abuse in the last decade. At some point you start to WORRY a little bit especially with young children very weak to suggestion and advertising. That's not luddism, which would be rejection of ANY improvement, that's called being a realistic fuck which learned and lived through the last decade.
    • I understand your position, and I appreciate the references to Diamond Age. But, my kids have school teachers fishing for information on my family. You know, the usual stuff about "do mommy and daddy do drugs?" Our government and retail and other services have their noses so far up my butt, I'm burping their boogers. The cops are roaming around with stingrays and x-rays, and some airports are still using rapey scans. And my kids are always running up to me reciting their need for the latest tacky plastic cr

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:36PM (#49271179)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • The future of child care is here (Score:4, Interesting)

    by aberglas ( 991072 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @06:43PM (#49271239)

    Who really can provide all the time that that a little girl requires. Now the problem is solved. The electric Barbie will be her friend and confident, and guide her through the mysteries of life. Parents can continue to watch TV safe in the knowledge that their children are safe. I presume that interactive destructor robots are not far off so little boys will not be left behind.

    The will all grow up to be good, politically correct individuals. As the software becomes more intelligent, it will appeal to older and older children. No need to deal with real friends who need to be cared for, listened to, and can be nasty. Barbie is always nice. Always listens, is always concerned about you. And all that personality data can be sold to other companies to help guide their entire life. Buttons sewn when she is 3, pressed when she is 30, how wonderful.

    Computers are getting smarter. This toy may be a bit of a joke, but the next version will be better. And they will be coming cheaply from China, with software driven by Google.

    When Computers Can Think [amazon.com]

    Anthony

    • I presume that interactive destructor robots are not far off so little boys will not be left behind.

      People are freaked out about a doll that has a server processing audio.

      That is NOTHING compared to the thought of a ten-year-old buy in charge of a small ultra-strong autonomous robotic mech suit... that learns right and wrong from the boy. *shudder*.

      On the other hand, that should absolutely stomp out the last vestiges of nerds being picked on in school. So I guess i'm in full support. Just lead me to the

    • Recall the bear from the movie AI?

  • Imagination (Score:5, Interesting)

    by verbatim ( 18390 ) on Monday March 16, 2015 @07:24PM (#49271511) Homepage

    They want to have a conversation with Barbie

    It's official, folks. Childhood imagination is now officially dead.

  • I'm uncomfortable with Siri, Cortana, the "smart" TV voice commands, and the whole lot of it unless and until all the processing can be done locally. Under no circumstances do I want my conversational data uploaded to the cloud for processing. Damned if I'm going to watch what I say in my own home because of eavesdropping equipment!

    • Suggested solution:
      1. Learn digital signal processing.
      2. Learn linquistics.
      3. Learn advanced statistical modeling.
      4. Learn machine learning.
      5. Create an open-source voice recognition library of comparable or greater accuracy.

      Or maybe a better plan:
      1. Contribute money to hire someone who has done 1-4 to help improve the libraries that already exist - I can find a few on google, but they clearly aren't good enough.

  • For the time being, you can expect all inexpensive products that feature voice recognition will be sending sound recordings to a server for processing. Building the voice recognition software and databases into the product would make them prohibitively expensive.

  • This kind of thing sounded cool and amazing in Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age, but in real life it's just fucking creepy and perverted.

    The key difference is that Stephenson's version was a primer that educated the owner about maths and science and all sorts of things, while this abomination is from a company that has a history of marketing to and exploiting children, and is a doll whose purpose is to teach rigidly oppressive gender roles, teaching girls things like "math is hard".

    sadly, Stephenson's version

  • Seriously... no, no, no and fuck no. I hate barbies anyway, this takes it to a new level.

  • Mattel didn't call it the "world's first interactive doll", they called it the "very first fashion doll that has continuous learning". The key words here being "fashion doll", which allows them to differentiate themselves from competitors they don't consider fashionable, and "continuous learning", i.e. the server is keeping a log of previous conversations, and using them to have better conversations.

    The Cayla doll for instance was brilliant at answering questions like "What is Polytetrafluoroethylene?",

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