I took a phone call from the Google Assistant

When Google unveiled the Duplex phone-calling reservation AI at I/O last month, the world was shook. Despite the potential convenience it presented, the system's ability to mimic human inflections in conversation was uncanny and borderline-creepy. Back then, we only heard recordings of what Assistant could do with Duplex technology. At a recent demo in New York, though, I got a chance to chat with the real thing, playing the role of a restaurant staffer on the call. More people will be taking calls made by Google Assistant soon, as the company begins public tests of the Duplex technology. Only a select group of users and restaurants across the US will be involved in the initial wave, though.