Intimate Machines 🤖
Intimate Machines 🤖
Learning in the Intimacy Economy | Part 2
Science fiction has long served as a window to the future. We have experienced the ever-increasing “merging of worlds” between the physical and digital since the dawn of the Internet. Dave and Helen break down the “Intimacy Surface” – the dynamic, multidimensional interface between humans and machines.
What we think of as “personalized” today will feel generic by comparison in the coming years…the opportunity is dependent on trust. Whatever individuals and businesses can earn user trust will unlock levels of intimacy required to change the game of personalization, triggering a seismic shift in our relationship with technology and unlocking a new era of human flourishing.
– MM
The following is an excerpt from Learning in the Intimacy Economy, a white paper written by Dave and Helen Edwards, the founders of Artificiality, in collaboration with Dash Media.
Artificiality is dedicated to unraveling AI's impact on individuals, organizations, and society through research, publications, and events.
The vision of an all-knowing AI assistant has been with us for some time, shaped by stories from science fiction, and probably needs no explanation. In reality, AI assistants have thus far been underwhelming. Most people use Siri for simple things like setting a timer and that's about it. Personalization has also fallen short and often feels invasive, with data sharing across platforms resulting in ads for things you might have glanced at in a store or for products you’ve already purchased.
Much of the partial, incomplete personalization of our online lives results from the decontextualization inherent in data collection practices. For decades, the tech industry has distilled rich, real-world experiences into quantifiable data—clicks, views, and time spent— which are then neatly categorized into rows and columns so interactions can be used for profit. This approach has undoubtedly boosted the bottom line of Big Tech but at the cost of stripping the context and meaning from our online behaviors. Machines can store every transaction, yet they fail to capture the 'why' behind our actions. Why do we choose a song? Sometimes it's about mood or company, or even to block out an earworm from a morning commute. These nuances matter because they represent the true sum of our experiences.
Context is everything. Machines currently lack the ability to understand this context, but generative AI, especially modern large language models, hold the promise of escaping this limitation. These models can process vast amounts of unstructured data, potentially capturing some semblance of the human context embedded within. How effectively they can recreate or understand our context remains to be seen, but the potential to do so is here.
We think of this exchange as the Intimacy Surface. We use the word "surface" in this context to mean a dynamic, multidimensional interface between humans and machines. It's not necessarily limited to the physical or digital interface, but a conceptual space that includes all of the contact between humans and AI. It's a malleable, responsive surface that can shift, allowing the user to choose the level of intimacy based on the nature of the interaction. The Intimacy Surface adapts to the user's level of trust and willingness to disclose as well as their needs and desires in context. This layer is highly attuned to emotional connection, context, and trust, enabling more meaningful interactions beyond just basic functionality. It fosters deeper, more personalized, and impactful exchanges.
The Intimacy Surface is composed of five key dimensions:
READ ON ⬇️
Full piece here: Learning in the Intimacy Economy
Helen Edwards is a Co-Founder of Artificiality. She previously co-founded Intelligentsia.ai (acquired by Atlantic Media) and worked at Meridian Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric, Quartz, and Transpower.
Dave Edwards is a Co-Founder of Artificiality. He previously co-founded Intelligentsia.ai (acquired by Atlantic Media) and worked at Apple, CRV, Macromedia, Morgan Stanley, and Quartz.