A Reddit post showing an electric toothbrush boasting artificial intelligence capabilities has gone viral, with commenters arguing about whether AI is really a necessary addition to our dental routines.
The Reddit post, titled "This toothbrush, that's right, TOOTHBRUSH, claims to have 'AI' capabilities," shows the latest model of the toothbrush—the Oral-B's iO Series 9—in a store. The poster, u/PangolinPope, sketched a question mark over the image, displaying their confusion at the technology. The post has garnered 21,100 upvotes and over 1,700 comments within a day of being shared.
The availability of high-tech toothbrushes isn't an avant-garde concept today. Presently, several brands have released electric toothbrushes, the most prominent one being the Philips Sonicare toothbrush, incorporated with Bluetooth technology and other features for personalized brushing recommendations.
Then why the baffled reactions to Oral-B's iO Series 9 toothbrush?
"Is it sentient?" asked one user in response to the Reddit post displaying the device.
"It does a better job at demanding better living conditions than actual living things do. Damn," said another user.
While artificial intelligence has been a contested subject since its invention, the primary realm of concern surrounding it is the replacement of human jobs with more efficient technology. Naturally, a toothbrush that is designed to improve the process of brushing teeth may not impact job creation or job loss.
Instead, commenters are interested in the technicality of the term "artificial intelligence," which has been incorporated into the product design.
"In other words, how can we put as many buzzwords without getting into legal trouble? It sounds like the law needs to be updated so buzzwords like AI don't get exploited," said one Redditor.
"Maybe it fits the technical definition, but I don't think anyone would consider a sensor, resistor, and a buzzer 'AI.' Hell, technically a light switch is 'AI' by that definition," another commented.
While some questioned the terminology, others backed its use.
"Sorry to break it to you. It does have Bluetooth and an android app. It detects via AI where you are brushing and checks if you are brushing all areas well enough. Most of the time at least," read a comment on the post.
"Yea the word basically means two things, "reactive computing" i.e. this toothbrush reacting to your brushing, and 'machine-learned' which means that a program learned something on its own," a commenter said.
Using Bluetooth, the smart toothbrush shows a 3D map area of the area you are brushing and directs you on ways to improve the technique for the best results.
Some commenters argued that the term "AI" is being attached to Oral-B's product only to differentiate it from the Philips Sonicare toothbrush that also uses Bluetooth technology.
"A.I. is the answer to the corporate question of 'What can we add to put our brushes in the smart toothbrush category if we don't want to have to include Bluetooth and communicate with an android app?'"
"'Let's write iO and AI on the box,'" said one user.
People who have purchased the toothbrush have given mixed reviews about its effectiveness. While the product boasts over 150 positive reviews on its corporate website, there are nearly 30 other complaints. Oral-B has given a response with constructive feedback to nearly all the complaints.
AI is a potential marketing bonus for a product. But some Redditors said that businesses should ensure their commodities incorporate AI instead of using the term solely to increase sales.
Artificial Intelligence is a rapidly growing field that increases the capabilities of machine learning. In April, researchers in Japan taught a robot how to open doors using something called deep predictive learning. At the end of the training, the robot was able to open the door 96.8 percent of the time.
Modular thinking in robotics has increased the personalization of healthcare by increasing precision and control, as well. Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have taken the concept of smart toothbrushes to increase the efficiency of dental care one step further by conducting clinical trials of tiny robots to deep clean teeth.
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