Wearable AI Detects Tone Of Conversation To Make It Navigable (And Nicer) For All

A Samsung Simband displays real-time results on conversational narrative and tone. In the past few years, wearables have offered to track many things, to predict illness, and even to give us rudimentary advice on staying healthy. The makers of a new device hope to expand the role that wearables can play in helping with day-to-day life, however, by adding'conversational wing-person' and'social coach' to their list of skills. Researchers from MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and Institute of Medical Engineering and Science (IMES) have developed programming to help those for whom conversation is difficult to navigate it with ease, and they've put it all in a wearable for real-time assistance. According to the team, the results of their study, "Predicting Latent Narrative Mood using Audio and Physiologic Data" [PDF], suggest that using such technology to pin down the tone of conversation as it happens is nearly within our reach--a potential boon for persons who experience anxiety, aspects of autism spectrum disorder, or other conditions that can make chewing the fat an intimidating prospect.