The "AI mouse" is just the start.

Earlier this year, Microsoft added a new key to Windows keyboards for the first time since 1994. Before the news dropped, your mind might’ve raced with the possibilities and potential usefulness of a new addition. However, the button ended up being a Copilot launcher button that doesn’t even work in an innovative way.

Logitech announced a new mouse last week. I was disappointed to learn that the most distinct feature of the Logitech Signature AI Edition M750 is a button located south of the scroll wheel. This button is preprogrammed to launch the ChatGPT prompt builder, which Logitech recently added to its peripherals configuration app Options+.

Similarly to Logitech, Nothing is trying to give its customers access to ChatGPT quickly. In this case, access occurs by pinching the device. This month, Nothing announced that it “integrated Nothing earbuds and Nothing OS with ChatGPT to offer users instant access to knowledge directly from the devices they use most, earbuds and smartphones.”

In the gaming world, for example, MSI announced this year a monitor with a built-in NPU and the ability to quickly show League of Legends players when an enemy from outside of their field of view is arriving.

Another example is AI Shark’s vague claims. This year, it announced technology that brands could license in order to make an “AI keyboard,” “AI mouse,” “AI game controller” or “AI headphones.” The products claim to use some unspecified AI tech to learn gaming patterns and adjust accordingly.

Despite my pessimism about the droves of AI marketing hype, if not AI washing, likely to barrage the next couple of years of tech announcements, I have hope that consumer interest and common sense will yield skepticism that stops some of the worst so-called AI gadgets from getting popular or misleading people.

  • TheFeatureCreature@lemmy.worldEnglish
    5·
    2 months ago

    Like when tech companies forced “Cloud” everything upon us in the early 2010’s, and then the digital home assistant craze that followed after.

    These things are not meant for us. Sure some people will enjoy or benefit from them in some way, but their primary function is to appease shareholders and investors and drum up cash. It’s why seemingly every company is desperately looking for ways to shoehorn “AI” into their products even if it’s completely nonsensical.

    • WhatAmLemmy@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      2 months ago

      I disagree. I believe that our interactions with AI represent a breakthrough in the level of data surveillance capitalism can obtain from us.

      AI isn’t the product. The users are. AI just makes the data that users provide more valuable. Soon enough, every user will be discussing their most personal thoughts and feelings with big brother.

      • TWeaK@lemm.eeEnglish
        1·
        2 months ago

        Data collection is theft. Every one of us is being robbed at least $50 per year. That’s how Facebook and Google are worth billions.

    • Kiernian@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      2 months ago

      They forced cloud on us so they could do the same nickel-and-dime billing that webhosts used for cpu cycles/ram/storage…

      …because it’s lucrative as hell when taken to a grand scale.

      But there are sometimes side benefits for us.

      I, for one, am over the moon levels of happy that I will never spend another weekend patching Exchange servers.

  • herrcaptain@lemmy.caEnglish
    4·
    2 months ago

    This article should have been titled, “Why the fuck does my mouse need an AI chat -prompt builder?”

    Seriously. I want my mouse to do one job - move around the screen and let me click on stuff.

  • Moose@moose.bestEnglish
    2·
    2 months ago

    In the gaming world, for example, MSI announced this year a monitor with a built-in NPU and the ability to quickly show League of Legends players when an enemy from outside of their field of view is arriving.

    …So it just lets them cheat? I remember when monitor overlay crosshairs were controversial, this is insane to me.

    • yamanii@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      2 months ago

      Yep, there are cheating monitors too and you will never know if other people have it:

  • werefreeatlast@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    2 months ago

    Keylogger=bad unless it came decipher what you’re doing so Costco can order more diapers or more vegan snacks.

  • tal@lemmy.todayEnglish
    1·
    2 months ago

    The problem is that “AI” doesn’t really entail any concrete technical capabilities, so if the term is seen in a positive light, people will abuse the limits of the definition as far as they are able.

    Not really a new phenomenon. Been done in the past as well, with “AI” as well as other things.

    With “self-driving cars” being vague – someone could advertise a car that could park itself “self driving” – we introduced newer terms that were linked to actual characteristics, like the SAE level system for vehicle autonomy.

    Might need to do something similar with AI.