USA, Silicon Valley | Silicon Valley: a real technology shock

Silicon Valley, USA (NetVision): The white self-driving car equipped with cameras around it arrived in less than ten minutes.

It doesn't seem particularly driven in the parking slot yet, but here the undersigned can't scream it louder either. I waved regretfully at the car behind me as I jumped into the self-driving car parked in the middle of the street. It wasn't my fault, but I was still embarrassed.

For several days I was in the technology capital of Silicon Valley and in San Francisco.

Being there was like being on an introductory course for the future.

A real culture shock or technology shock, we could call it.

And tech giant Google was responsible for most of that, when it rolled out several new AI functions at this year's Google I/O conference, which Nettavisen sent me to cover.

Read also: Google CEO to Nettavisen: – Disturbance to the workplace

Technologically challenged at 26 years old

Most, If not all of it, the IT giants were put to bed in 2022 when Open AI launched the Chat GPT app. Unfortunately, IT giants are not the only ones. As a “regular user” of the big internet, I couldn’t quite figure out how AI would become my best friend, sparring partner, and lifelong “partner in crime.”

I'm simply a technologically challenged 26 year old. But the battle to win the KI race is well underway. And not just for tech giants. After a few days in San Francisco, I realized it was just a matter of rolling up my sleeves. Artificial intelligence is here to stay.

You and I must hop on the train before it's too late.

I start on relatively bare ground. So far, I'm using “little KI”, by pressing Little. The robot can transcribe audio recordings and summarize articles for our readers. The first one in particular has been a “game changer” in my day-to-day work as a journalist.

Sometimes, if I'm in a new city, I also ask KI which café I should choose or which café has the best croissants.

It's fun, but it's still only “beginner” material in terms of what the machine can actually do for you.

Read also: Google is changing the search engine that everyone uses

A hefty price per month for your best friend

On a bus ride from one Google office to another, I downloaded the advanced version of Google's chatbot, Gemini Advanced. It costs about 250 NOK per month, but you can try it for free for two months (!).

My current best friend only costs a drink in town here and there. But my current best friend can't teach me step-by-step Dutch or French, or heavy arithmetic analysis (not her specialty).

In the very near future you will You don't have just one virtual assistant, you want more. With Google Gems (coming soon) you'll get your own virtual coach, language tutor, and travel planner. You will be able to train it yourself. “Hey, you're a skilled travel planner with a focus on major cities in Europe. You specialize in cafés and attractions for women ages 25-30,” I should be able to instruct the bot to do this.

There is no AI friend yet

Only your imagination sets limits on the type of assistant you can get.

And even your imagination will be able to help you with artificial intelligence!

That's for sure some Regulations that will stop A couple of delusions.

Google has been clear that it believes most users want a creative partner and are using AI to increase their productivity. It doesn't look like the company will make it easier to engage with romantic AI partners. But who knows what the future holds?

When I ask Gemini Advanced if a robot would like to be my girlfriend, I get a clear no. Meta's and Snapchat's chatbots also politely decline, saying they'd rather talk about something else. Rejected by robot. I live well with that. Google, on the other hand, agrees to be my friend for a day, asking me if we should dream up a French café together. Hmm. I'm scared and happy at the same time. I wonder how he knows what I like?

Most exciting I've seen

On the second day of the Google conference, journalists from around the world were able to see how far Google has come in the pursuit of 3D meetings. It was the most amazing thing I saw on my trip to the tech capital. It was clear that Google was keen to show us this, and for good reason. I've seen it in the eyes of real people who have worked to create the boardroom of the future where we look into each other's eyes, but not really.

One by one, we were taken into a Google meeting room by one of the Google developers working on the project. I sat there alone, a little unsure of what exactly I was waiting for. Suddenly, the same developer appears in 3D on the big screen in front of me. He's sitting in another room, but it was like he was sitting right in front of me. He can talk and move. At one point, he extended his hand towards me to give me an apple.

For a split second I almost wondered if the apple was actually going to fall off the screen.

It looks like Google is ready to actually roll this out next year. They naturally target the business market. They could not say anything about the exact date. They won't discuss price either. But it will likely be expensive. I would have loved to show it to our readers, but we weren't allowed to take photos or videos. Pictures won't do the technology justice we're told, as a regular phone can't capture this advanced technology (yet??).

Read also: Microsoft is at Apple's throat: it promises better performance and much better artificial intelligence

The last farewell to the robot

At the airport, on my way away from Silicon Valley and San Francisco, I said a final goodbye to the tech capital by buying an iced coffee from the robot Cafe X. “AI in your pocket” is here to stay. “We don't have these in Norway,” I said to a passerby who stopped to watch the robot make iced coffee.

But even here I was taken to bed.

A quick search shows that Gardermoen already has a similar machine, which can also clean. Surely more and more will appear soon. The positive thing about the robot is that it does not need advice. Here in the United States, the tipping culture has taken off. Everyone should have tips. Waiters, bartenders, hairdressers, baristas and drivers. Often even before the service is complete. I'm all for tipping for good service, but tipping and service don't go hand in hand anymore.

The tip amount is also higher than before, and 20 percent seems to be the new normal here in the United States. It's really no surprise that people earn roughly $2 an hour. Someone has to pay the company's workers.

Neither the robot nor the self-driving car had the option to tip. So I thanked the robot out loud for the coffee, while the man who passed by and I laughed.