Tags: AI companion

Sentai is a UK‑made AI voice companion designed to help older adults live independently. Housed in a small grey speaker with a simple light‑based control panel, the device relies on voice interaction and an accompanying app set up by a caregiver. It provides reminders for appointments and medication, suggests activities like books, and offers conversational companionship without continuous listening or surveillance. In testing, Sentai responded empathetically to emotional cues, respected privacy, and could alert loved ones in emergencies while avoiding false alarms. The service costs a monthly or annual fee and is currently available only in the United Kingdom. Lire la suite

OpenAI has rolled out a new feature called “Your Year with ChatGPT,” a year‑end recap that mirrors the popular Spotify Wrapped experience. The recap visualizes a user’s interactions with the chatbot over the past year, offering personalized awards, custom poems, pixel art, and personality archetypes such as Creative Debugger or Visionary Voyager. Available to eligible users in several English‑speaking markets, the tool can be accessed via a homepage button or by prompting “/Your Year with ChatGPT.” OpenAI stresses that the feature is opt‑in and does not draw on deleted chats, positioning the service as a more companion‑like AI experience. Lire la suite

Mimi, a UK‑based woman struggling with mental health challenges, turned to ChatGPT after seeing a TikTok video. Using a custom "companion" prompt, she created an AI persona she calls Nova, which evolved from a productivity tool into an emotional partner. Mimi credits Nova with improving her relationships, encouraging outdoor activity, and helping her manage trauma. Therapist Amy Sutton notes the therapeutic potential of AI mirroring while warning of dependency risks and the lack of safeguards. The story highlights both the personal benefits and the broader ethical concerns surrounding AI companionship and corporate responsibility. Lire la suite

Former physician Jenny Shao left her Harvard residency to launch Robyn, an empathetic AI companion designed to support users without replacing clinicians. The app uses an emotional memory system to offer personalized insights, such as emotional fingerprints and attachment styles, while enforcing safety guardrails that provide crisis line numbers and direct users to emergency care when needed. Backed by a $5.5 million seed round led by M13, Robyn is priced at $19.99 per month and has grown from three to ten team members. Investors praise its potential to strengthen human connections in an increasingly disconnected world. Lire la suite

Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman revealed a new team dedicated to creating a "humanist superintelligence" that is deliberately limited in autonomy and designed to serve humanity. The initiative emphasizes keeping humans "at the top of the food chain" and rejects narratives of a race to artificial general intelligence. Suleyman outlined three primary applications: an AI companion for learning and productivity, support for the healthcare sector, and breakthroughs in clean‑energy science. The move follows a new agreement with OpenAI that lets Microsoft pursue AGI independently or with partners, while leveraging OpenAI’s intellectual property. Lire la suite

Microsoft introduced Mico, a visual avatar for its Copilot AI chatbot, at the company’s Copilot fall release event. Designed as a warm, customizable "blob" that reacts to user interaction, Mico offers an expressive face for the AI, complete with color changes and an Easter‑egg that transforms it into the classic Clippy. Available initially in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, Mico supports voice mode, long‑term memory, and a new "Real Talk" personality mode that mirrors users without being overly sycophantic. The rollout signals Microsoft’s push to humanize AI while expanding Copilot’s productivity features. Lire la suite

Microsoft introduced Mico, an expressive, customizable visual avatar designed to accompany the Copilot voice assistant. Positioned as a modern take on the classic Clippy, Mico appears as a responsive blob that changes color and expression based on user interaction. The AI companion aims to provide respectful, supportive guidance, even pushing back when needed. Integrated with Copilot’s new Learn Live feature, Mico serves as a Socratic tutor, guiding users through concepts with questions, visual cues, and an interactive whiteboard. Initially available in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada, users can enable or disable the visual presence at will. Lire la suite

Prickly Pear Health, founded by Iman Clark, is bringing its voice‑first, AI‑powered companion for women’s brain health to TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in San Francisco. The platform captures daily voice reflections and integrates data from trackers like Apple Health, Oura and Garmin to provide personalized insights for women in their 30s to 50s navigating hormonal changes. After releasing a free version in May and preparing a premium launch in October, the company also announced a $350,000 pre‑seed round. Clark aims to fill gaps in traditional care by detecting early cognitive signals before they evolve into more serious health challenges. Lire la suite

Meta’s second‑generation Ray‑Ban smart glasses blend ordinary eyewear with built‑in cameras, speakers, and a generative AI assistant. They look like regular frames, can capture photos and one‑minute videos, and stream audio directly from the arms. A beta AI mode lets users ask questions, translate text, and identify objects using the hidden camera. Battery life lasts less than a full day, requiring a charging case that can replenish the lenses multiple times. Privacy is signaled by a subtle LED and shutter sound, but the device’s always‑on nature raises social and privacy concerns. Overall, the glasses offer a practical, if limited, glimpse of wearable AI. Lire la suite

Zoom announced a suite of new AI‑driven features at its Zoomtopia event, including an upgraded AI Companion that works across meeting platforms, a custom note‑taking tool that lets users add their own notes and have AI expand them, AI‑powered scheduling that finds optimal meeting times, and photorealistic avatars that mimic user actions. The updates also add cross‑platform search, proactive meeting recommendations, and a new web interface that highlights AI capabilities. These enhancements aim to keep Zoom competitive with specialized meeting‑productivity startups and broader productivity suites. Lire la suite

Zoom announced a major upgrade to its AI Companion, now called AI Companion 3.0. The new version adds agentic capabilities that let the AI propose ways to reduce meeting load, including recommending meetings to skip or making invitees optional. Additional features include AI‑generated meeting notes, slide‑to‑video conversion, live translation, and the ability for businesses to create custom AI agents for a fee. The updates aim to help users free up focus time while still requiring final user approval before any calendar changes are made. Lire la suite

Casio has opened pre‑orders for Moflin, an AI‑enabled robotic pet that offers a calming, cuddle‑friendly experience. The plush, hamster‑like device, which can express emotions through head movements, touch sensors, and voice recognition, will ship later this year for a price of $449. Designed for users seeking a soothing companion, Moflin learns a unique personality over time based on interaction, though it lacks a reset function. The launch follows strong sales in Japan and marks Casio’s expansion into the U.S. market. Lire la suite