Samsung, the same company that spent 2019 tripping over itself repeatedly in its attempts to produce a decent foldable phone that didn’t crap out after a couple days’ usage, is teasing a major unveiling it’s planning for CES in just a few days. Get ready, folks, for Samsung’s introduction next week of some kind of “artificial human” called NEON that the company insists is much more than a step up from Samsung’s virtual assistant Bixby.
The website for this mysterious project is neon.life, which doesn’t really reveal much other than — okay, perhaps “life” in the address signifies… something. Oh, but the site does include a helpful countdown clock which confirms the big reveal will take place at 3 AM Eastern Time on January 7.
Honored to have so much coverage even before we unveil. But contrary to some news, NEON is NOT about Bixby, or anything you have seen before. #NEON is coming to #CES2020, so stay tuned! @neondotlife
— NEON (@neondotlife) December 26, 2019
NEON = ARTIFICIAL HUMAN
— NEON (@neondotlife) December 27, 2019
A report from the Korea Herald predicts NEON will be some kind of new Samsung AI platform. The outlet goes on to note that NEON was developed by Samsung’s US-based STAR outfit (“STAR,” for Samsung Technology and Advanced Research Lab) which is headed up by Pranav Mistry, Samsung’s youngest executive. “A newly emerging trend in AI is to make AI platforms resemble humans,” one industry official told the news service. “Global tech giants including Samsung are racing to create something that can be called AI assistants that are like real humans, beyond the current device-based platforms.”
Whatever Samsung wants NEON to be, it seems that it will be able to speak and understand multiple languages. That is, if the images on the NEON Twitter account in languages like English, Spanish, and Chinese serve as a clue.
您见过'巧夺天工'吗?#NEON pic.twitter.com/SSseNjHLHU
— NEON (@neondotlife) December 24, 2019
That Twitter account has been keeping up the mystery by polling its followers, asking what they think NEON refers to. Some of the guesses are funny: “Skynet with a different name.” “Rebranding of Bixby.” “Holographic scanning and projecting for real-time communication like calling or streaming.” We don’t have to wait much longer to see what Samsung is planning, and then the launch will be at hand of yet another totally practical offering that’s showcased at CES which quickly makes its way into mainstream usage, right?
