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Imagine walking into your smart home and speaking to your voice assistant just like you would to a friend. “Hey Josh, it’s almost time for the kids to get home, and it’s getting dark. Can you make sure everything’s ready?” and voila! The porch lights switch on, the oven starts preheating, the shades lower, and the kitchen lights turn on. This is the tantalizing possibility that could become a reality with AI language models.
One reason that ChatGPT seems to be everywhere is that it is more than just an AI powered chat bot. OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT has provided an API (application programming interface) that allows other companies to build specific applications on top of its technology. That is what Microsoft is doing with its Bing search engine. And it is what Josh.ai is doing with home automation. Essentially, what Josh.ai has done is to build a voice assistant on top of ChatGPT, turning it into voice activated commands instead of just written text, then programming those commands into controls for your smart devices.
Voice assistants have come a long way in recent years. Nowadays, you can simply ask Alexa or Siri to perform a variety of tasks, such as turning on the lights or providing you with the temperature. While these devices are helpful, they can sometimes get confused. Voice assistants currently require precise language and can often misunderstand basic commands, leading to frustrating and unhelpful responses like, “Which light do you want me to turn on?” or “The temperature in Alaska is -10 degrees,” or even, “hmmm, I don’t understand that.”
But with AI technology such as ChatGPT, people have started wondering, “What if the voice assistants in my house could do more than just respond to simple commands?” Have you ever tried to tell Alexa to bring you a beer? Of course she can’t do that (yet), but what if your smart devices could provide intelligent responses to open-ended questions like, “What’s a good way to unwind after a rough day?” That’s the potential of voice assistants powered by new AI language models, according to Alex Capecelatro, co-founder of the Josh.ai home automation system.
Currently, Josh.ai is only available as a voice control layer in custom smart home installations. Now, the company is betting big on the new generation of large language models (LLMs) used by chatbots like ChatGPT. Capecelatro believes that these systems will transform today’s voice assistants into something much more useful. “If we don’t adopt ChatGPT-type technology, businesses like mine won’t exist in a year,” he warns.
Josh.ai, the voice assistant that specializes in controlling smart gadgets, is working on integrating large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT to improve its conversational abilities. With its extensive knowledge graph models, Josh can parse natural language commands and understand even imperfect sentences and different accents. Using extensive knowledge graph models, Josh.ai can differentiate between “satellites” and “lights” and understand that “open the drapes” doesn’t mean “get some grapes.” The team has spent a lot of time fine-tuning the system to work with different accents and understand imperfect sentences. This means that even if you swear at it, Josh.ai will still know what you mean. The ultimate goal is to make Josh even smarter and more intuitive, using the context of a home automation system to better understand what you want.
ChatGPT integration can also enhance the smart home media experience. With Josh’s integration with the Ava remote, you can browse for movies and TV shows with your voice. Say “What are some really good shows on Netflix that are maybe romcoms and feature (this) actor,” and ChatGPT can compile a list and present it on the screen of the remote. Movie night sorted!
The future of voice control and integrating AI into home automation is exciting the the potential looks bright. Currently ChatGPT has been known for providing inaccurate results, so it is not yet ready for home security. While it can generate impressive results, there is the risk of it spewing bad data or even regurgitating content with no filter. Josh.ai is taking its time to ensure that its integration is safe and reliable, and not just rushing to market. But at the rate this technology is developing, will you be ready to hand over the keys to your house to artificial intelligence? Xssentials will help you get there!
