How AI Will Change Our Relationship With Computers
We’ve always adapted to software. Now, AI is enabling software to adapt to humans instead.
Vinod Khosla is founder of Khosla Ventures and has spent the last 40 years in the business of innovation. He was the co-founder of Sun Microsystems. Khosla Ventures is an investor in OpenAI.
There’s a lot of buzz about “AI hardware” and “gadgets.” I want to discard these terms. They’re misleading. What you call gadgets or hardware, I see as facilitators of a new era in which low-latency voice becomes the primary way users interact with smart AI: These devices are support infrastructure. This isn’t just about devices; it’s about a fundamental shift in human-computer interaction.
Artificial intelligence will spur two fundamental changes in our relationship with technology. The first is that voice—already the most natural interface for human interaction—will become a dominant interface. Imagine latency reduced to less than half a second, a stark contrast to the sluggishness of touch-based devices. Even silent voice is on the table—vocalizing commands without sound, an especially useful option in a public setting like a cafe. Silent voice is mouthing the words without allowing sound to come out of your mouth. Technologies to detect such “silent speech” will allow one to privately dictate in public places without anyone else being able to listen.