Google Tests AI Assistant to Offer Personalized Life Advice

AI is advancing rapidly, encroaching on tasks once exclusive to humans. The latest target? Therapists and life coaches. Google is testing an AI assistant to offer personalized life advice, partnering with DeepMind and Scale AI for rigorous evaluation.

Over 100 experts with doctorate degrees across fields are testing the AI's capabilities. They're assessing its ability to thoughtfully address deeply personal questions about users' real-life challenges, like offering advice on telling a friend about being unable to attend their destination wedding.

Google's AI aims to cover 21 life skills, from medical fields to hobbies, even creating customized budgets. However, Google's AI safety specialists are cautious. Over-reliance on AI for major life decisions could impact user well-being and agency.

Google's launch of AI chatbot Bard in March restricted its ability to offer medical, financial, or legal advice, focusing on mental health resources instead.

Confidential testing is part of developing safe and helpful AI. A Google DeepMind spokesperson stated isolated testing samples don't represent the product roadmap.

While Google treads carefully, public enthusiasm for expanding AI capabilities emboldens developers. The success of ChatGPT and other tools reflects the desire for AI life advice, even with current limitations.

AI's journey raises questions about user autonomy, data privacy, and how technology's limits will reshape the landscape of human-provided services.