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Google Will Become an AI Company

mattmaroon.com

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Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#41

Post by javanix »

This might be the most rose-tinted article about Google I've ever read.

There are nothing but complaints about Google's lack of personal customer service in regards to their AdSense program - what makes you think that future AI projects from the company would be any better?

Just because Google's made a self-driving car doesn't mean they're automatically the front-runner in that category. What about all of those teams that compete in the DARPA robotic car competition every year?

Also, the advantages that Maroon mentions (especially the safety ones) would most likely only come to fruition once self-driving cars become ubiquitous - something that its hard to imagine happening within the near future (or at least during the current incarnation of Google as we know it).

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#42

Post by randallsquared »

achompas wrote: post #22
randallsquared wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For many people, whatever nice benefits of density there are (and I'm struggling to think of more than one or two... choice of places to go for fun, maybe?) seem offset by the harms of density, which are manifold. However, lower commute time is something nearly everyone wants, even if it's currently only 10 minutes, so it's an easy point to make.

For many people, whatever nice benefits of density there are Here are a few that I came up with in 30sec: Varied options on things to do (like you said) Closer proximity to other people in general (more social opportunities) Commuting on foot Better access to more government services Greater selection of goods, food and produce

Except for "Greater selection of goods, food and produce", all the ones you add seem like they could be costs rather than benefits, for many people. Closer proximity to other people in general, for example, was one of the harms I was thinking of. But I'm slightly more misanthropic than most Americans, I guess.

The one about greater selection isn't actually true, as far as I can tell. You can get pretty much anything shipped to your small town, and while you're less likely to just run across something at the store that you find you like, you'll be paying lower prices for everyday stuff. I live in the DC metro, and every time I travel to visit friends or family (who all live in far less densely populated areas), I'm struck by how much cleaner, cheaper, and open everything is, and how everyone seems friendlier and less suspicious.

An advantage neither of us mentioned, but which is pretty large, I think, is that people are less likely to have to move or change careers when changing jobs.

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#43

Post by philwelch »

achompas wrote: post #22
randallsquared wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For many people, whatever nice benefits of density there are (and I'm struggling to think of more than one or two... choice of places to go for fun, maybe?) seem offset by the harms of density, which are manifold. However, lower commute time is something nearly everyone wants, even if it's currently only 10 minutes, so it's an easy point to make.

For many people, whatever nice benefits of density there are Here are a few that I came up with in 30sec: Varied options on things to do (like you said) Closer proximity to other people in general (more social opportunities) Commuting on foot Better access to more government services Greater selection of goods, food and produce

Energy efficiency

Better availability of private services due to economies of scale

Psychological sense of community (vs. isolation)

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#44

Post by cosgroveb »

abstractbill wrote: post #27

I was very impressed when I found out Google was running a free 411 phone information service just so that they could gather a ton of data to train new voice-recognition algorithms. That's real long-term thinking, and definitely makes them an AI company in my book.

Sadly now that it has served its purpose, it has been shut down. Granted I hardly ever need it now that I have a smartphone but it was very useful when I didn't!

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#45

Post by 100k »

Traffic is caused by human error? I suppose flooding is caused by "water error", then?

Traffic is caused by too many vehicles attempting to use a limited resource at the same time. Driverless cars may make this more tolerable (certainly riding the bus does) but the idea that this will make traffic obsolete is laughable.

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#46

Post by brlewis »

jonmc12 wrote: post #25

Google has ALWAYS been an AI company. From the beginning, pagerank indexed information, made meaning out of this information, and could predict the most relevant url better than anything else in the market. Search was simply the first application. AI is not a market - AI is a tool. Google is NOT poor at product development. However, it does seem that they have failed to build some products around AI tools (like Googl…

Read the article: "Search is just the problem they first applied AI to, and the one they've grown to dominate. In the future they will have much bigger fish to fry."

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#47

Post by glhaynes »

100k wrote: post #45

Traffic is caused by human error? I suppose flooding is caused by "water error", then? Traffic is caused by too many vehicles attempting to use a limited resource at the same time. Driverless cars may make this more tolerable (certainly riding the bus does) but the idea that this will make traffic obsolete is laughable.

I wonder if computer-controlled cars coordinating with each other (maybe not explicitly but using "swarming"-type schemes) could ease traffic congestion somewhat. But yeah, it'd only be somewhat, certainly not the end of traffic.

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#48

Post by philwelch »

rimantas wrote: post #34
maeon3 wrote: post #14

Self driving cars are 15 years away. The self driving cars will have to deal with the chaotic human drivers, and this will require Strong AI. Once we have this, driving around will be one of the small issues of the day.

I hope they are further away. For me a bus is self driving car, but driving a car is also a pleasure not only the means to get from a point A to a point B.

Driving a car a short distance in light traffic is fun.

Driving a car long distances, or in heavy traffic, or in dangerous conditions (snow and ice or heavy rain) is some combination of tedious, exhausting, and stressful.

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#49

Post by mdonahoe »

javanix wrote: post #41

This might be the most rose-tinted article about Google I've ever read. There are nothing but complaints about Google's lack of personal customer service in regards to their AdSense program - what makes you think that future AI projects from the company would be any better? Just because Google's made a self-driving car doesn't mean they're automatically the front-runner in that category. What about all of those teams…

"What about all of those teams that compete in the DARPA robotic car competition every year"

I imagine that Google is hiring them. Sebastian Thrun, leader of the team that won the first DARPA Grand Challenge, is now part of Google's driverless car project.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebastian_Thrun

Re: Google Will Become an AI Company

#50

Post by achompas »

randallsquared wrote: post #42
achompas wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For many people, whatever nice benefits of density there are Here are a few that I came up with in 30sec: Varied options on things to do (like you said) Closer proximity to other people in general (more social opportunities) Commuting on foot Better access to more government services Greater selection of goods, food and produce

Except for "Greater selection of goods, food and produce", all the ones you add seem like they could be costs rather than benefits, for many people. Closer proximity to other people in general, for example, was one of the harms I was thinking of. But I'm slightly more misanthropic than most Americans, I guess. The one about greater selection isn't actually true, as far as I can tell. You can get pretty much anything…

I also live in the DC metro area...maybe we've met at the HN meetups? Will you be there next Wednesday?
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