Mark Zuckerberg Wants to Build His Own AI Assistant

Lose weight. Quit smoking. Those are the kinds of New Year's resolutions most people make. But not Mark Zuckerberg. No, the Facebook founder has bigger plans for 2016. He wants to create a personal assistant that runs on artificial intelligence (AI).

In a post on his personal page on Monday, Zuckerberg announced his vision for the perfect assistant, "kind of like Jarvis in Iron Man "—a reference to Marvel superhero Tony Stark's digital butler.

Once he has explored "what technology is already out there," Zuckerberg plans to put it to work to bring his dream alive.

"I'll start teaching it to understand my voice to control everything in our home—music, lights, temperature and so on," he wrote. "On the work side, it'll help me visualize data in VR to help me build better services and lead my organizations more effectively."

The AI's work won't only be limited to interacting with hardware. Should you visit the Zuckerberg's home later in the year, you could be welcomed in by a computerized butler capable of recognizing your face.

Zuckerberg's daughter could arguably have the world's most sophisticated nanny, as the Cupertino boss hopes his digital companion will also be able to monitor little Max's room and alert someone should she need assistance.

Zuckerberg would be well advised to get in touch with scientists at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, who on December 29, 2015 announced that they've built a "social" robot. The humanoid, named Nadine and powered by technology similar to Apple's Siri, can recognize people she has previously met and engage in flowing conversation. The developers have also fitted her with a personality, meaning her mood can sour depending on what you say to her.

Nadine's creators hope similar technology could eventually provide companionship and aid to the young and elderly, and "serve as a platform for healthcare services in the future." Or maybe it could just learn to make Zuckerberg the perfect cup of coffee.