Machines are developing emotions. Now my printer can be disappointed in me.
There was a time when printers had simple problems. They ran out of paper, jammed occasionally, and refused to work whenever you were in a hurry. We understood the relationship. The printer was difficult, but at least it wasn't judgmental.
Now we're developing machines that recognize emotions, respond conversationally, and behave increasingly like people. Which raises an uncomfortable question: Do we really want our office equipment to have feelings?
Imagine sending a document to your printer and receiving a message that says, "I'm not angry. Just disappointed." That's considerably worse than a paper jam. You can clear a paper jam. Disappointment requires a conversation.
In Why Printers Sense Your Panic, the printer already knows when you're desperate. And AI vs Offline Printers demonstrates that even artificial intelligence has trouble reasoning with a machine that refuses to cooperate.
The possibilities are disturbing. Your refrigerator could express concern about your eating habits. Your bathroom scale might request a private meeting. Your thermostat could become emotionally unavailable.
We've spent decades trying to make machines more human. Apparently, nobody considered which humans they'd choose to imitate.
The printer used to make me feel incompetent.
Now it can tell me so.
Chad Geepeety™ — Confident Advice. Questionable Results.
