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PUBLICATIONS

In this space, you'll find a mix of my work that includes academic papers focused on epistemology, decision making, artificial intelligence, and aesthetics, as well as patents that highlight some of my inventions, the products i've built, and AI systems more generally. It also has some general publications of mine on business and technology. 

Research & Academic Publications

ACADEMIC PUBLICATIONS

The acquaintance principle (AP) and the view it expresses have recently been tied to a debate surrounding the possibility of aesthetic testimony, which, plainly put, deals with the question whether aesthetic knowledge can be acquired through testimony—typically aesthetic and non-aesthetic descriptions communicated from person to person. In this context a number of suggestions have been put forward opting for a restricted acceptance of AP. This paper is an attempt to restrict AP even more.

Konigsberg, Amir, The acquaintance principle, aesthetic autonomy, and aesthetic appreciation, The British Journal of Aesthetics, 52 (2), 153-168, 2012.

The acquaintance principle (AP) and the view it expresses have recently been tied to a debate surrounding the possibility of aesthetic testimony, which, plainly put, deals with the question whether aesthetic knowledge can be acquired through testimony—typically aesthetic and non-aesthetic descriptions communicated from person to person. In this context a number of suggestions have been put forward opting for a restricted acceptance of AP. This paper is an attempt to restrict AP even more.

Contributors to the recent disagreement debate have sought to provide a uniform response to cases in which epistemic peers disagree about the epistemic import of a shared body of evidence, no matter what kind of evidence they are disagreeing about. The varied cases addressed in the literature have included examples of disagreement about restaurant bills, court verdicts, weather forecasting, chess, morality, religious beliefs, and even disagreements about philosophical disagreements. The equal treatment of these varied cases has motivated the search for a uniform response to peer disagreement wherever it is encountered. In this article I challenge this prevalent approach in the literature. I grant the notion of epistemic peer and accept that being a peer may amount to the same thing in different domains; nonetheless I contend that different domains appear to call for different responses to disagreement. I argue …

One of the basic foundations for many recommender systems is the assumption of preference consistency and transitivity of choice. In this paper we challenge this assumption and argue that it should be revised. We also provide a method by which recommender systems can estimate preference reversals and choice intransitivity. Our general approach is to incorporate variants of choice-behavior such that recommender systems incorporate decision-sensitive factors within choice-sets that tend to influence decision making. After establishing why recommender systems ought to consider preference reversal phenomena, we provide a high-level outline of a mechanism for automatically discovering and predicting preference reversals. Thereafter we show how the discovered or predicted preference reversals can help in generating choice sets that 1) are better for the users all things considered (by being in line with their general preferences as exhibited over time) and 2) help users make better decisions.

Sarah Moss has recently suggested that when they encounter conflict, epistemic peers should not split the difference between the credence that they each assign to some disputed proposition p, as has been suggested by conciliatory approaches to belief revision in the debate surrounding disagreement in the literature. Moss contends that an epistemic compromise between peers need not be the arithmetic mean of prior credences, in the sense that if my credence in some proposition p is x and yours is y, the credence that is the result of our compromise need not be (x + y)/2. More generally, Moss's proposal advocates an approach to how estimations of truth value, exhibited in credences, should in fact be considered in resolving conflict and disagreement. The general idea is that splitting the difference between credences may be inadequate, seeing as agents may assign different epistemic values to different …

Rational aesthetic deference becomes apparent when one person’s aesthetic belief gives another person a reason to move his own aesthetic belief in the direction of the other person. It occurs when one person’s aesthetic belief (for illustrative purposes, let this be my belief) gives another person (for illustrative purposes, let this be you) a normative reason to move your belief in the direction of mine, on epistemic grounds. In such a case, what the first person believes also provides a justification for the second person’s aesthetic belief. This kind of justification is an indirect justification because it is based on reasons that merit deferring to someone else’s judgment, rather than on reasons that support that judgment. 

We propose a novel method for evaluating, detecting, and inferring preferences in choice situations involving items with multiple attributes. Our method locates characteristics that reflect the relative weight that a user gives to varying attributes belonging to an item, when these attributes are combined into a unified multi-attribute utility function. Our method enables the attainment of coefficients that reflect the preferential prism of a user in relation to items with multiple attributes. Broadly, we translate the form of a u-function into an inequality with scalar variables which define half-spaces on a plane. These half-spaces intersect and form closed shapes (in a k-dimensional world). The closed shapes with the most intersections are the most likely areas in which the vector lies. Attaining the values of the various xi allow a computational system to restore the u-function. This enables the system to predict the alternative item’s total utilities in yet unmet choice-making scenarios. A novel extension of methods relates to the identification of inconsistent choice-making. In addressing the latter problem, we note that hyper-planes split the ndimensional world into parts. We relate to every one of these parts (segments or rays in 1D, shapes, bounded or unbounded, in 2D), and count the number of half-spaces that contain it; this number reflects the probability that the actual (unknown) parameters are in it. Counting the number of half-spaces containing each segment allows us to consider multiple user profiles and considerations. This paves the way to the construction of more complex frameworks for understanding user choice as a multicriteria decision making problem.

We describe a system that provides what we call all things considered support to a user. The core feature of this system is that it finds a balance between the satisfaction of short term (local) preferences and the satisfaction of long term (global) preferences. By operating according to both local and global standards the system serves a debiasing function–it produces recommendations that bypass the common tendency that people have of granting excessive weight to utilities that relate to the short term. The novelty of this system is that for every decision it has to make it considers a user’s interests all things considered; it incorporates that user’s local interests as well as his global interests.

This chapter addresses a core topic in the recent debates about disagreement between peers, namely whether and how you ought to revise your beliefs if you discover that you are disagreeing with a peer – a colleague, fellow expert, or simply someone that you have reason to believe is just as competent as you are on the matter at hand. The topic of disagreement and more specifically the problem of how to respond to disagreement, is relevant in many areas in life where the same information is available to different people that come to hold different beliefs in regard to what that information means. The topic also bears on questions relating to epistemic warrant, namely to what extent one’s beliefs can be justified by evidence, to first-person conviction, epistemic humility, normative epistemology, and self-servicing beliefs.

We propose a number of heuristics that can be used for identifying when intransitive choice behaviour is likely to occur in choice situations. We also suggest two methods for avoiding undesired choice behaviour, namely transparent communication and adaptive choice-set generation. We believe that these two ways can contribute to the avoidance of decision biases in choice situations that may often be regretted.

The problem of disagreement asks about the appropriate response (typically the response of a peer) upon encountering a disagreement between peers. The responses proposed in the literature offer different solutions to the problem, each of which has more or less normative appeal. Yet none of these seems to engage with what seems to be the real problem of disagreement. It is my aim in this paper to highlight what I think the real problem of disagreement is. It is, roughly, the problem of deciding whether a revisionary tactic is appropriate following the discovery of disagreement as well as deciding which revisionary tactic is appropriate. This, I will show, is a slippery and inevitable problem that any discussion of disagreement ought to deal with.

This dissertation explores the philosophical challenges related to the normative evaluation of beliefs, focusing on decision-making under uncertainty with limited and ambiguous information. It is structured into three main parts, each addressing different aspects of this overarching theme. The first part consists of three papers examining the epistemic implications of disagreement and how it may lead to epistemic compromise, contributing novel insights to ongoing debates. The second part includes two papers at the intersection of epistemology and aesthetics, raising normative questions about aesthetic judgments and beliefs, with one paper discussing rational aesthetic deference and the other exploring non-perceptual aesthetic appreciation. The final part presents a paper on the concept of decision value in choice problems, challenging the conventional consequentialist approach to evaluating choices.

Central to the dissertation is the concept of bounded rationality, contrasting with idealized reasoning models that overlook human limitations. The work aims to delineate the differences between ideal and human reasoning, advocating for a practical epistemology that acknowledges common reasoning fallacies and suggests principles to improve reasoning processes. This approach is likened to a prescriptive discipline, akin to ethics, offering guidelines to navigate the complexities of reasoning in everyday life and emphasizing the significance of avoiding poor reasoning practices. Through its chapters, the dissertation addresses how individuals should adjust their beliefs in light of new evidence and disagreements, proposing a nuanced understanding of epistemic compromise and the value of decisions beyond their immediate outcomes.

In terms of the nature of aesthetic judgement, there is a clear general divide between two camps. The first takes aesthetic judgement to be belief, either in a narrow cognitivist sense (Hopkins 2006, 2011; Whiting 2015) or a broader sense which allows for certain expressivist or quasi-realist equivalents (Robson 2023: 16–8). The second takes the term “judgement” to capture something like a state of appreciation. Understood in terms of appreciation the debate is largely resolved as a matter of definition and no optimist would want to maintain that we can, say, achieve a state of appreciation—typically understood as something like experiencing the qualities of a thing’ in such a way as to find them “worthy or valuable” (Dickie 1974: 40)—on the basis of testimony alone (Konigsberg 2012 is an apparent exception but this is only because he understands “testimony” much more broadly than the kind of pure testimony we’re focusing on). It might easily seem that, as we have already seen Lopes (2014) suggest with regards to AP, the participants in this debate might merely be talking past each other, with optimists maintaining that we can legitimately form aesthetic beliefs on the basis of testimony and pessimists denying that we can legitimately appreciate aesthetic qualities on that basis. However, while we don’t deny that there might be some level of misunderstanding within these debates, we think that this irenic approach is mistaken for two reasons.

Patents

PATENTS

Adaptive navigation and location-based services based on user behavior patterns, CV Goldman-Shenhar, A Konigsberg, P Wang, O Tsimhoni, US Patent 9,476,729. 2016. 

A method and system are disclosed for adaptive driver guidance for navigation and location-based services based on user behavior patterns. A driver-facing camera and a gaze tracking system determine the location of the driver's visual focus while an outside-facing camera detects and interprets external driving situations, a microphone and a speech analyzer identify driver vocalizations, and driver-proximate sensors and the driver-facing camera detect driver emotions. The driver's visual focus, the driver vocalizations and the driver emotions, along with vehicle system parameters from a data bus, are used to evaluate driver satisfaction with navigation guidance and determine driver behavior patterns. An adaptive navigation guidance engine modifies navigation guidance content and timing based on the driver satisfaction and behavior patterns. Adaptation of guidance for location-based services is also provided.

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A vehicle includes a multi-touch screen and a controller. A method for providing information related to a vehicle function includes visually displaying on the multi-touch screen a representation of a portion of the vehicle including a plurality of operating sections including a plurality of vehicle functions and a HELP icon. One of the vehicle functions is selected in response to a user action that includes a dragging motion on the multi-touch screen between the HELP icon and the selected vehicle function. Information related to the selected vehicle function is accessed. A preferred mode is employed to communicate the information related to the selected vehicle function to the user.

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Method and apparatus for including sound from an external environment into a vehicle audio system, A Konigsberg, T Koren, E Tzirkel-Hancock, US Patent App. 14/304,887, 2015.

A method for producing sounds corresponding to an exterior of a source vehicle through an audio system corresponding to an interior of the source vehicle includes receiving an input audio signal corresponding to an undefined sound originating from a source within an external environment of the source vehicle and determining the undefined sound to be indicative of a specific external sound to be produced at a desired loudness by one or more output sound devices located within an internal cabin of the source vehicle. An output audio signal is generated based upon the input audio signal and a desired loudness for the specific external sound to be produced. The output audio signal is transmitted to the one or more output sound devices located within an internal cabin of the source vehicle to produce the specific external sound mixed in combination with internal sound that originates from one or more …

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A vehicle automates a driver action by controlling vehicle systems according to a rule. The rule includes a trigger event and an automated action. Rules are created or added for use by a vehicle using applications including user-defined rule applications, automatic rule applications, and network applications.

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Product information inconsistency detection, A Konigsberg, A Avidor, US Patent 10,169,810, 2019. 

A computerized method of detecting product description inconsistencies, comprising receiving from a seller a product description comprising one or more attributes of a product offered for sale on an online marketplace arena, extracting automatically the one or more attributes by analyzing the product description using one or more language analysis tool, analyzing automatically the one or more attributes compared to a plurality of attributes of one or more other products of a same class as the product to detect one or more inconsistencies of the product description with respect to the one or more attributes and outputting the at least one inconsistency.

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Systems and methods for suggesting and automating actions within a vehicle, 
CV Goldman-Shenhar, A Konigsberg, O Tsimhoni, US Patent 10,053,112

The present disclosure relates to systems for implementing a computer-readable storage device comprising instructions, including a behavior recognizer, that, when executed by a system having a processor, cause the processor to perform operations, for providing personalized proactive assistance to a vehicle user. The operations comprise receiving a behavior input data package comprising a sequence of user events using the behavior recognizer, and determining the behavior input data package indicates proactive assistance to be presented to the vehicle user by the system, using a user behavior model and a machine state model of the behavior recognizer. The disclosure also relates to methods for providing personalized proactive assistance to a vehicle user.

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Methods and systems for detecting driver attention to objects, , A Konigsberg, E Tron, G Golan, US Patent 9,189,692, 2015. 

Methods and systems are provided for detecting an attention of an occupant of a vehicle. In one embodiment, a method includes calculating, by a processor, a first gaze vector in a three-dimensional space based on a first vehicle location, a first vehicle orientation, and a first gaze direction; calculating, by the processor, a second gaze vector in the three-dimensional space based on a second vehicle location, a second vehicle orientation, and a second gaze direction; and determining the attention of the occupant based on the first gaze vector and the second gaze vector.

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A method for interpreting physiological information includes receiving, from at least one physiological signal source, physiological data associated with a user of a vehicle, receiving vehicle event data and driving context data associated with operation of the vehicle, and determining a state of the user based on the vehicle event data, the driving context data, and the physiological data.

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Systems and methods for navigating a set of data objects, U Gindi, A Konigsberg, A Avidor
US Patent 9,632,676, 2017.

There is provided a method for dynamically updating a set of data objects, comprising: managing an object dataset defining attribute values for attribute parameters for each object; receiving a query including search term (s); applying the query to the object dataset to select a first set of objects including attribute parameter (s) associated with the search term (s); instructing rendering of the first set of objects within a graphical user interface (GUI); receiving a selection of object (s) of the first set of objects; identifying attribute parameter (s) according to the selected object (s); excluding a second set of objects from the first set of objects based on different attribute values of the identified attribute parameter (s), to identify a third set of objects; and instructing dynamic rendering to update the GUI to present the third set of objects, wherein the third set of objects includes fewer members than the first set of objects.

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Methods and systems for processing attention data from a vehicle, A Konigsberg, E Tron, G Golan, US Patent App. 14/181,316, 2015.

Methods and systems are provided for processing attention data. In one embodiment, a method includes: receiving the attention data from a first vehicle, wherein the attention data indicates an attention of an occupant of the vehicle to a point in a space; processing, at a global processing system, the received attention data with other attention data to determine one or more statistics; and generating report data based on the one or more statistics.

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Micro product specification update based on results to a search query,  A Konigsberg, A Avidor, Y Baharav, US Patent App. 15/298,264, 2018. 

A system and method for controlling a graphical user interface (GUI) configured for searching in a database and for changing dynamically based on a received search query, the method including maintaining a database indexed according to attributes defined in a database model interpreting a received search query term by a natural language analyzer as at least one of the attributes extracting from the indexed database search results having values of the at least one of the attributes, and adapting design elements of the GUI to display statistical information about the used at least one attribute and the attribute values.Central to the dissertation is the concept of bounded rationality, contrasting with idealized reasoning models that overlook human limitations. The work aims to delineate the differences between ideal and human reasoning, advocating for a practical epistemology that acknowledges common reasoning fallacies and suggests principles to improve reasoning processes. This approach is likened to a prescriptive discipline, akin to ethics, offering guidelines to navigate the complexities of reasoning in everyday life and emphasizing the significance of avoiding poor reasoning practices. Through its chapters, the dissertation addresses how individuals should adjust their beliefs in light of new evidence and disagreements, proposing a nuanced understanding of epistemic compromise and the value of decisions beyond their immediate outcomes.

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Product navigation tool, , O Shacham, A Avidor, A Konigsberg, US Patent App. 14/681,194, 2016. 

A method for updating an interactive product navigation user interface that comprises performing interface updating iterations, during iteration, send instructions to an application running on a client terminal to present an interactive product navigation user interface with an interactive indication, receive a user selection of the interactive indication from the application, select a product as a currently selected product according to the user selection, receive at least one reference product characteristic from product characteristics of the currently selected product, and update the interactive product navigation user interface with at least one new interactive indication of at least one member of at least one recommended product, the at least one member is selected according to a similarity between a characteristic value of the reference product characteristic of the currently selected product and a respective characteristic …

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Methods and systems for decision support, A Konigsberg, CV Goldman-Shenhar, US Patent App. 14/275,533, 2015. 

Methods and systems are provided for providing decision support. In one embodiment, a method includes: receiving a recommendation associated with a vehicle; receiving contextual data associated with the vehicle; determining a risk factor based on the recommendation and the contextual data; and generating notification data based on the risk factor to notify a user of the vehicle of the risk factor associated with the recommendation.

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Translation of a search query into search operators, ,A Konigsberg, A Avidor, US Patent App. 15/351,640, 2018.

A system and method for translating a search query to search operators usable by a search server to extract search results from a database, the method comprising identifying in a database model an attribute related to a database category that corresponds to a search term received via a search user interface, the database model includes a value space of possible values of the identified attribute translating the search term to a search operator by analyzing distribution of values in the value space of the identified attribute and determining based on the analyzed distribution whether to translate the search term to filtering or sorting search operator, and extracting search results by applying the determined search operator on a database indexed according to the database model.

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Interactive ordering of multivariate objects, , A Avidor, O Shacham, A Konigsberg, US Patent App. 14/720,860, 2016.

A method of iteratively adapting an order of multivariate objects. The method comprises instructing a presentation of a plurality of entries representing a plurality of multivariate objects in an order set according to at least one of a plurality of object variants on a display and iteratively updating the order in a plurality of iterations wherein in each one of the plurality of iterations: identifying a user selection indicative of a new object variant from the plurality of object variants, calculating a new order for the a plurality of multivariate objects by a ordering function combining the new object variant and the at least one object variant, and instructing an update for the presentation, wherein the update replaces the order with the new order.

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Multivariable objects navigation tool, A Avidor, A Konigsberg, US Patent 10,013,468, 2018.

A method of adapting a GUI that comprises selecting a group of multivariable objects which comply with a search query from a plurality of multivariable objects, each the plurality of multivariable object is defined by a plurality of object variable values each of one of a plurality of object variables, for each one of the plurality of object variables, calculating a plurality of difference values each defines a difference between a first object variable value of one of the group of multivariable objects and a second object variable value of another of the group of multivariable objects, identifying a set of differentiating object variables from the plurality of object variables according to an analysis of the plurality of difference values of each one of the plurality of object variables, and updating a GUI accordingly.

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Systems and methods for navigating a set of data objects, U Gindi, A Konigsberg, A Avidor
US Patent App. 15/494,634, 2017

There is provided a method for dynamically updating a set of data objects, comprising: managing an object dataset defining attribute values for attribute parameters for each object; receiving a query including search term (s); applying the query to the object dataset to select a first set of objects including attribute parameter (s) associated with the search term (s); instructing rendering of the first set of objects within a graphical user interface (GUI); receiving a selection of object (s) of the first set of objects; identifying attribute parameter (s) according to the selected object (s); excluding a second set of objects from the first set of objects based on different attribute values of the identified attribute parameter (s), to identify a third set of objects; and instructing dynamic rendering to update the GUI to present the third set of objects, wherein the third set of objects includes fewer members than the first set of objects.

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Vehicular social media system, N Lavi, A Konigsberg, US Patent 9,628,701, 2017.

A social media system for a vehicle and a method of operating the social media system are provided. The social media system, for example, may include, but is not limited to a camera, an interface, a memory configured to store one or more safety settings, and a processor communicatively coupled to the camera, the interface and the memory, the processor being configured to receive, via the interface, a command request to utilize the social media system, determine, based upon the safety settings stored in the memory, when the command request may be completed, and executing the command request when the processor determines that command request may be completed.

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Methods and systems for processing and displaying structured data, 
A Konigsberg, CV Goldman-Shenhar, US Patent App. 14/287,959, 2015.

Methods and systems are provided for processing data. In one embodiment, a method comprises: receiving query data that requests a result; performing a query on structured data to determine a plurality or results; determining a relevancy for the plurality of results; and generating graphical user interface data for graphically displaying the plurality of results in a user interface based on the relevancy.

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Business, Technology, Entrepreneurship

INDUSTRY PUBLICATIONS

Today’s eCommerce search engines can index a large number of product names or descriptions to aid product search, but they don’t always deliver relevant results.

While online shopping has exploded over the last decade and innovation around e-commerce has skyrocketed, there has been very little development around quality improvements in product search, navigation or discovery, notwithstanding the success of generic and open source search solutions, such as Elastic. That is ironic, as great search can make all the difference for an etailer’s bottom line. Here’s the problem: Define exactly what “great search” is.

Recent advances in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are slowly turning this into a real possibility. BCIs enable direct communication between the brain and a computer, and thus, any external device. This is done using mechanisms that monitor our brain activity and translate this into language that computers can read.

Amid rapid advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies, there’s mounting anxiety about what the rise of AI and automation will mean for millions of workers. As machines display ever-more sophisticated cognitive capabilities, generate new efficiencies and yield billions of dollars in cost savings, are we on the cusp of an AI-triggered jobs wipeout?

As tech entrepreneurs and investors, we do our best to become “visionaries” in our respective fields so that we can best predict our markets’ future. However, we often find ourselves so caught up with keeping pace with everyday changes that we don’t have the time or bandwidth to anticipate what will come next. Indeed, with today’s dizzying pace of progress, it seems easier than ever to miss the next wave, trend or tectonic shift. To me, both the speed and multidimensional nature of today’s change-drivers are what makes good decision making in companies so difficult. But, ironically, good decisionmaking is perhaps more crucial than ever in an economy where the pace of change is faster than ever. So how does one strive toward becoming a technology visionary in an era defined by such swift and sweeping progress?

To gain the most value from their growing DL CV investments and to gain a competitive edge, companies must investigate ways to improve their development tools, methodologies and workflows.

If you're looking to found a startup, coming up with an idea to work on is hard. Unless you've gone through a eureka moment or joined forces with someone else who has a mature idea, ideating in one form or another is probably what you're doing right now in order to start your journey.

Uncomfortable as it may be to admit, uncertainty lies at the heart of some of the most critical decisions we make in the workplace.

Amir Konigsberg highlights Ken Goldberg's insights in a Forbes article, emphasizing a future where AI and human workers collaborate, a concept Goldberg terms "multiplicity." This partnership, explored in Goldberg's Wall Street Journal piece, refutes fears of an AI-dominated workforce by showcasing the complementary strengths of humans and machines.

Last year's hype around chatbots revolutionizing customer service with AI has quieted, yet the underlying advances in natural language processing continue to drive entrepreneurs like Amir Konigsberg of Twiggle. Leveraging AI, Twiggle aims to transform online retail search engines into intuitive interfaces that understand customer queries as effortlessly as a conversation with a salesperson, promising significant advancements in how consumers interact with technology.

The introduction of an AI-powered Boss Baby for personalized Cameo messages demonstrates an innovative blend of animation and technology, allowing fans to engage with beloved characters in new ways. This venture, while receiving mixed feedback, underscores the evolving landscape of fan interaction and the potential for AI to personalize entertainment experiences, signaling future expansions into various digital domains.

Teaching computers how to really talk to humans

Last year's hype around chatbots revolutionizing customer service with AI has quieted, yet the underlying advances in natural language processing continue to drive entrepreneurs like Amir Konigsberg of Twiggle. Leveraging AI, Twiggle aims to transform online retail search engines into intuitive interfaces that understand customer queries as effortlessly as a conversation with a salesperson, promising significant advancements in how consumers interact with technology.

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