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Ambient Intelligence

Amazon brings further dystopia into our lives by way of "ambient intelligence". They now have the ability to power just about everything with Alexa so you can be snooped on 24/7 in an around your house by harmless looking things that you did not even realize were so powered. 

“It just opens up the what we call the real ambient intelligence and ambient computing space,” he said. “Because now you don’t need to identify where’s my hub—you just speak to your environment and your environment can interact with you. I think that’s a massive step towards this ambient intelligence via Alexa.”

Apart from the obvious consequences of such intrusive technology, there is the matter of unintended consequences - some for better others for worse. Seniors can age in place thanks to smart home technologies - which is probably a good thing. Makes it easier for the people concerned because moves can be both expensive and emotionally demanding. But it also helps friends and family rest easier knowing that they are surrounded by familiar people and things living where they always have. The advisory on how having AI interact with infants effects them and what if anything a parent can do about it is a bit all over the map so its hard to imagine the long term consequences.

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