Thursday, August 21, 2025

They're Stuffed Animals, They're Also AI Chatbots

Curio is a company that describes itself as "a magical workshop where toys come to life."

Posted by lamplighter at 04:31 PM | 16 COMMENTS | permalink

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Do A.I. chatbots packaged inside cute-looking plushies offer a viable alternative to screen time for kids? Maybe not.

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-- TechCrunch (@techcrunch.com) Aug 16, 2025 at 3:41 PM

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More from the article ...

... Each of its three smiling plushies has a back zipper pocket that hides a Wi-Fi-enabled voice box, linking the character to an artificial intelligence language model calibrated to converse with children as young as 3.

Eaton plunked Grem on a conference table and positioned it to face me. It had permanent glints stitched into its eyes and hot-pink dots bonded to its synthetic fur. "Hey, Grem," Eaton said. "What are the spots on your face?"

A bright mechanical trill originated from Grem. "Oh, those are my special pink dots," it said. "I get more as I grow older. They're like little badges of fun and adventure. Do you have something special that grows with you?"

I did. "I have dots that grow on me, and I get more as I get older, too," I said.

"That's so cool," said Grem. "We're like dot buddies." ...


#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-08-19 02:53 PM

More from the article ...

... I flushed with self-conscious surprise. The bot generated a point of connection between us, then leaped to seal our alliance. Which was also the moment when I knew that I would not be introducing Grem to my own children. ...

#2 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-08-19 02:54 PM

What might the ramifications of possibly having an open microphone in one's house, sending everything said to some server somewhere?

imo, this may not end well ...

#3 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-08-19 02:56 PM

Kids will be RAISED by computers in the future.

Parents will be first "optional" and then Obsolete.

It's gonna really Suck too, Man.

Humans are stupid. They want everything done cheap and without any Fuss.

No mess with AI.

It never Eats, Sleeps,or has to take a ----.

Perfect Employee. No need for Wages,Sick Leave, Vacations.

The Perfect Slaves.

#4 | Posted by Effeteposer at 2025-08-20 04:43 PM

The term you're looking for is:
"Machines of Loving Grace."
en.m.wikipedia.org

#5 | Posted by snoofy at 2025-08-20 04:57 PM

"Kids will be RAISED by computers in the future."

Yeah I saw that movie (A.I. Artificial Intelligence) doesn't mean it's gonna happen that way. Or like Terminator either.

And beside. The "future" is already here. AI is everywhere.

And kids are being raised by social media and their smart phones.

The thing is.. when we cross the event horizon of the Singularity you probably won't even notice it. It may have even already happened.

#6 | Posted by donnerboy at 2025-08-21 05:44 PM

These are like IQ sponges for kids... I mean, if it's not wise to give a freakin' phone to kids under 13, then...?

#7 | Posted by Corky at 2025-08-21 06:38 PM


Each of its three smiling plushies has a back zipper pocket that hides a Wi-Fi-enabled voice box, linking the character to an artificial intelligence language model calibrated to converse with children as young as 3.

Didn't realize the market had so many Corky's.

And beside. The "future" is already here. AI is everywhere.

Not its not, its just Corky's crutch for not being able to think for herself.

What might the ramifications of possibly having an open microphone in one's house, sending everything said to some server somewhere?

This is already happening with Alexa and Google home.

Sigh. Unbelievable.

Parents will be first "optional" and then Obsolete.

This is the communist view of the world. Its the whole reason teachers were against helping parents with a trans child. To Lumpers and Communists parents don't matter.

#8 | Posted by oneironaut at 2025-08-21 07:47 PM

#8

Seems to have confused DonnerB and I in his laughable retort.

Confucius say, "Man who have s...t for brains have birds on head."

#9 | Posted by Corky at 2025-08-21 08:20 PM

Afatpoofter and FAGAT Jeff's fake ----- bitch can go ---- themselves

#10 | Posted by LegallyYourDead at 2025-08-21 11:42 PM

OpEd: Puny humans are no match for AI
www.computerworld.com

... New research shows how easily manipulated people are by AI tools, especially when they're designed to manipulate. Knowledge is the only defense.

We live in a new age of artificial intelligence (AI), which is making everything better. And worse.

AI is transforming everyday life by improving diagnostics, personalizing medicine and learning, detecting fraud, automating tasks, optimizing operations, supporting smarter decision-making, reducing costs, enhancing productivity, and enabling innovations like self-driving cars, predictive analytics, and virtual assistants.

That's the good news.

The bad news is that large language model (LLM)-based generative AI (genAI) shows potential in the realm of tricking, conning or persuading people at scale with an efficiency that goes beyond what people can do on their own.

The first step in defending against AI's potential to manipulate the masses is to know what's possible. Research published in the past two weeks begin to paint a picture of what can be done. ...


#11 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-08-22 01:12 PM

What if it hears you rubbing one out? I don't think they make silencers for that.

#12 | Posted by senorcleavage at 2025-08-22 03:16 PM


@#12 ... What if it hears you rubbing one out? ...

Yeah, that's my concern.

It seems to be an open microphone in the house, sending what it hears to a server in ~who knows where.~

Would you want an open microphone in your house recording everything it hears?

Think about that.


#13 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-08-22 10:32 PM

You already have that if you have Alexa...

It's funny, we put bugs in our own homes voluntarily and we like it that way.

#14 | Posted by snoofy at 2025-08-22 10:36 PM

Seems to have confused DonnerB and I in his laughable retort.

Well we ARE both brilliant.

He is a very confused person. And apparently in denial too.

AI is everywhere. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not there. Unless you live in a cave. Even then I'd be suspicious.

AI is becoming increasingly ubiquitous, meaning it's appearing everywhere and integrated into many aspects of our lives. This is happening both directly, like through AI-powered applications on our phones, and indirectly, as AI is embedded in the systems and processes we use daily.

AI is manipulating humanity already. Unfortunately it would take an AI to be able to unravel it all now.

#15 | Posted by donnerboy at 2025-08-23 11:48 AM

Or a Global Power Outage.

Lol.

#16 | Posted by Effeteposer at 2025-08-23 12:42 PM

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