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Executive Secretary In Every Computer

Posted by timothy on from the almost-but-not-completely-unlike-tea dept.

An anonymous reader writes "BusinessWeek Online just ran an interview with a researcher from Sandia National labs whose team has developed an alternative approach to artificial intelligence. They have come up with a software program that models a computer user's behavior and gives the user advice, corrects his errors or saves files according to the user's own logic. The idea is for computers to learn how to use with users -- instead of vice versa. The software has already been tested with air traffic controllers."

4 of 320 comments (clear)

  1. Wired Article by jetkust · · Score: 3, Informative

    here is the wired article about it. It's basically 2 pages of "This technology is nothing like Clippy."

  2. It exists: The Brain by aunchaki · · Score: 2, Informative

    The next killer app, in my opinion, is the application that allows you to not only save content, but also the context

    This already exists. It's called The Brain and it's a replacement for standard filesystem browsers. It lets you file and browse anything (files, websites, binaries, etc...) and make your own interconnections between any objects based on your own [twisted] logic.

    I've wanted to try it, but it's Windows-only. I've thought about building a simple MySQL app that does something similar, but it wouldn't have the cool 3D Java/ActiveX/whatever object browser that's mocked up on the front page of their website.

  3. Sony and DARPA are working on similar technology by smartalix · · Score: 3, Informative

    As it has been pointed out, the concept of an intelligent computer assistant is not new. In addition to the other projects mentioned, Sony is working on a project they call the "Sensing Computer", a PDA-sized device that will contain a software agent that will memorize your data and your usage patterns in everything from your passwords to your friends names and birthdays to your favorite ice cream, and will prompt you when you need info and/or are dealing with the world around you.

    Darpa is working on a project under its total information awareness program called "lifelog", where a computer model will be developed of your likes, dislikes, behavior patterns, and everythign about you so that a computer model can be built. This model could then be used to predict behavior or spotlight devations from the norm that may indicate criminal or terrorist activity. Kind of like a predicitive "Big Brother" AI. If this technology comes to pass, it will make Orwell's nightmare look like a shopping mall in comparison.

    --
    Read a preview of my novel CYBERCHILD at www.smartalix.com/cyberchild
  4. I could be wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative
    but it looks like they are using a knowledgebase approach to implicitly build a profile of the user. The word that makes me think it is using knowledgebase/case based reason is the term "inference". If that is what they are doing, they are most likely using clips or Jess rules engine. The technology itself has been around for a while and both rules engine implement the RETE algorithm defined by Charles Forgy in the 80's.

    The reporter needs to do more research before writing an article.