Tag: artificial intelligence

A.I. Might Become Your Personal Receptionist

A.I.’s day job is still destroying civilization, but it’s also picking up a side-hustle as your personal answering machine.

AT&T is testing a new “A.I. receptionist” that screens your calls… kind of like a bouncer for your phone. Its job? Block spam, make you look important, and occasionally irritate your grandma when she calls to ask about Netflix.

Here’s how it works: When a call comes in, the bot answers with questions like, “Who may I say is calling?” or “What’s this in regard to?” If the caller gives the right answers, the call gets through. If not, the system hangs up or takes a message. Basically, it’s like caller ID on steroids… with a passive-aggressive personality.

This could be a game-changer for anyone who can’t just ignore numbers they don’t recognize… like doctors, business owners, or people who owe money to six different credit card companies.

There are a couple of catches though.

  • You might have to interact with the A.I. receptionist yourself, which means you could get interrogated like you’re trying to enter Fort Knox, when you’re just calling a friend. (People would be able to whitelist numbers.)
  • And yes, it does raise the terrifying possibility of your A.I. and the telemarketer’s A.I. getting stuck in an endless loop of “What is this in regard to?” until the heat death of the universe.

The system will roll out this year for select AT&T customers. No word on when it’ll go nationwide… but hey, at least until the robots take over, your car’s extended warranty guy might finally stop calling. Or, have someone else to talk to.

Addicted to ChatGPT? You “Slopper”!

Imagine if Clippy from Microsoft Word never went away… and instead became your life coach. That’s basically where we’re at, except Clippy had a glow-up and goes by “ChatGPT.”

And now, there’s a new term for people who rely on it way too much: “Sloppers.”

It’s the latest internet label for folks who ask ChatGPT to help with everything from writing emails to planning their social lives. The term started circulating on TikTok, where someone proudly announced, “A friend coined the word Sloppers for people who use ChatGPT for everything. That’s such a good slur.” (Social media: where insults go to thrive.)

One guy told a story about being on a first date with a Slopper… when the woman pulled out her phone to ask ChatGPT what she should order. Yep, she needed A.I. to choose her dinner. He was so thrown off, there was no second date. Probably a good call.

So why “Slopper”? It’s short for “A.I. slop,” a reference to the flood of weird, robotic, low-effort content generated by artificial intelligence. And it’s not just the content… it’s the idea that some people are letting A.I. do all their thinking for them.

Still, not everyone is sold on “Slopper.” Other nicknames being floated include “Botlicker” (ouch) and “Second-hand thinker” (double ouch). Honestly, they all sound like names your smart refrigerator would call you during an argument.

Of course, we’re still in the early days of this tech revolution, and our collective cringe vocabulary is just getting started. But if you find yourself whispering “Hey ChatGPT” more than you talk to actual humans, maybe take a breath. Step away from the algorithm. Go outside.

Or don’t. Just ask ChatGPT what to do next.

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