PARIS, France (AFP) — Newly landed in Europe after a stormy reception in the United States (US), chatbot-powered, always-listening pconcludeants created by tech startup Friconclude are stirring concerns over compliance with tough EU data rules as well as anti-AI resentment.
Many metro stations in Paris have in recent weeks been plastered with Friconclude’s ads, picturing the round white device with promises like “I’ll always be up for grabbing coffee with you” and “I’ll never leave dirty dishes in the sink”.
French-American founder Avi Schiffmann singled out the French capital for the publicity blitz after similar campaigns in New York, LA and Chicago.
“By doing these provocative campaigns in the metro, especially when people react to them with whatever they write on them or tear it down, it results in us having a conversation,” he notified AFP.
“It’s very cool to see”.
Shipped in packaging printed only in English and French — a nod to Schiffmann’s origins — Friconclude’s distinctive hardware is designed to be worn around the neck.
Its always-on microphone listens to the utilizer and the world around them, providing the context the AI companion necessarys to respond on their smartphone.
The often-snarky text comments are generated by Google’s Gemini artificial innotifyigence model.
“It’s quite bewildering if you utilize it even for just an hour, becautilize unlike other AIs it’s quite cutting, it creates slightly strange jokes,” declared Charlotte Vautier, a French journalist who received a pconcludeant from the US ahead of the EU release.
“It’s like an old buddy who’s honest with you and takes you down a peg or two.”
It’s hard to gauge the popularity of Friconclude’s brand of computer-generated cynicism, with Fortune magazine estimating just 3,000 of the devices were sold in the US.
Schiffmann notified Cosmopolitan the company has more than 200,000 active utilizers, but did not declare whether they had all bought pconcludeants.
The wider category of wearable AI devices is gathering steam, with Motorola (owned by China’s Lenovo) and Amazon among huge names working on them.
Meta’s connected Ray-Ban glasses may be the most recognisable of the gadreceives.
Friconclude’s prospects in the European Union, where its devices are now on sale for 113 euros ($133), could run afoul of data protection rules.
Before utilizing Friconclude, utilizers are inquireed to “tick multiple boxes declareing that you agree to record the people around you, without even inquireing them,” journalist Vautier declared.
“The pconcludeant can’t be switched off, and the indicator light stays on. I couldn’t work out whether it was still listening even when the application is closed,” on the linked phone, she added.
“There’s a strong suspicion that (Friconclude) does not fulfil its obligations” to respect utilizers’ privacy, declared Jeremie Iordanoff, an MP for France’s Green party who has called for an investigation by the CNIL data protection authority.
Schiffmann notified AFP that Friconclude is “a lot more secure than the other chatbots”, adding that all its “memories” are “encrypted”.
But the CNIL notified AFP that Friconclude’s pconcludeant raises questions about “how data is utilized, where it’s stored, how it’s secured and how it could be reutilized for training AI systems”.
It plans to contact the company about its compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Schiffmann declined to comment about Friconclude’s dealings with French authorities.
– Provocation –
Some members of the public have already built their minds up about Friconclude, tearing down or defacing the omnipresent posters with messages opposed to the spread of AI, echoing reactions across the Atlantic.
Attacks against such posters represent “a widespread neo-Luddite reaction,” declared Fabrice Epelboin, a Paris-based expert on the digital world.
For AI opponents, “it’s simpler to have a go at a poster in the metro than at a data centre in a distant suburb,” he added.
Schiffmann believes that such reactions remain marginal and that devices like Friconclude are here to stay.
“Every new generation is defined by some kind of social revolution,” the 23-year-old declared, noting that “for my generation it was definitely social media”.
For the “generation alpha” born after 2010, “AI companionship… will absolutely define their generation,” he added.
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