On May 8, 2018, Google I/O was held at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California. If you are wondering what Google I/O is, don't worry, I've got your back. "Google I/O brings together developers from around the globe annually for talks, hands-on learning with Google experts, and the first look at Google's latest developer products." In the Keynote, Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet Inc. (Google's parent company), shared the then-latest developments that Google had been working on. One of the projects that he spoke about was something that maybe no one saw coming; an application of Artificial Intelligence (AI), soon to be on our own smartphones, that left the world in awe.

On May 8, 2018, Google I/O was held at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California. If you are wondering what Google I/O is, don't worry, I've got your back. "Google I/O brings together developers from around the globe annually for talks, hands-on learning with Google experts, and the first look at Google's latest developer products." In the Keynote, Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet Inc. (Google's parent company), shared the then-latest developments that Google had been working on. One of the projects that he spoke about was something that maybe no one saw coming; an application of Artificial Intelligence (AI), soon to be on our own smartphones, that left the world in awe.

Google first showed off Duplex by having the AI book haircut appointments, but the Assistant feature was unexpectedly left by the wayside in favor of making restaurant reservations. It appears to have come roaring back, though. VentureBeat has discovered that Duplex is now ready to book haircut appointments in the real world. When you find a barber or hairstylist that requires a phone call to book an appointment, you tell Assistant details like your preferred timing, cut type, and even your choice of stylist -- the AI then handles the call for you. As before, Duplex will warn that the call is automated and being recorded. If the hairstylist doesn't want to be recorded, Duplex will pass the call to a human operator.

Tuesday morning, many people on my Facebook feed shared this this video of Google's new AI assistant. The article accompanying the video called it "jaw-dropping." It was shared thousands of times, with many calling it "amazing." In the video, recorded at Google's I/O developers conference, CEO Sundar Pichai played a recording of a Google Assistant calling to make a haircut appointment. The audience seemed enthralled, oohing and aahing at all the appropriate moments. The announcement isn't a surprise; we knew AI would dominate the conference.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic," wrote sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke. This week in Silicon Valley, Google (GOOG, GOOGL) proved it. Several times during CEO Sundar Pichai's keynote presentation at the company's I/O developer conference, the audience of 7,000 gasped or burst into applause. That's because some of Google's massive investments in artificial intelligence are now paying off--in features that truly are magical. And in an absolutely mind-frying demonstration, Google Assistant booked a haircut appointment by placing a phone call to a human receptionist at the salon and having a conversation on your behalf, sounding indistinguishable from a real person.