Google Glass: A Step Closer to an Omniscient AI

For those watching Person of Interest and those who believe that in the future, an artificial intelligence (AI) will try to destroy mankind, a product like Google Glass is a scary proposition. It is adding or rather improving one of the "five senses" that the AI already possesses. 

If the AI was already existing, and I believe that the Internet is its primitive form, sight is the sense that is already well developed, with the existence of both government and private web cameras, and cameras on smart phones. 

Sound or hearing is probably the second sense that is in its early development stage, with conversations over the phone and the internet being recorded in telecommunication companies servers. 

Touch is also another technology that may be in development. We already know that robotic arms are used in industrial plants to perform various mechanical tasks. Will an AI need to feel an object? Not if it simply wants to crush or destroy it. And if the AI were to chase after an enemy, locomotion or movement will be of higher priority, something already achieved by today's robots and drones.

Smell and Taste will probably be the senses developed last. Smell, so that the AI can determine if what it is hunting is human or not. As if heat and motion sensors were not practical enough for "the hunt". 

And even if speaking is not one of the five senses, the ability to talk is already demonstrated by technologies like Siri in the Apple iPhone. Will the AI need to communicate with its prey? Perhaps if it were to explain why it was about to kill its prey, then this ability would be useful.

While Google Glass might seem like an additional product Google sales will benefit from, it is also a way for them to gather more data for Google Maps. So instead of spending on vehicles to gather their map data and update their databases, consumers of Google Glass will potentially be doing it for free. Sure, privacy laws will probably be incorporated, but who can ensure that these laws will be implemented when the control of the technology is no longer in the hands of government. And even those in government probably abuse their privileges on privacy. Knowledge is power.

Can't help but wonder if technologies like this will result in a more restrictive society, rather than opening doors to connecting and exploring.

I would like to see a future where Lt. Commander Data helped man attain his fullest potential. And to reach a stage where an AI is sentient, I believe it's senses must be fully developed for it to explore its environment, then learn, infer, and later on theorize and make decisions. But while technology always has the potential to be used for good, there is also the potential for it to be used for evil. And beyond that door, the Terminator awaits. Asta la vista, baby!!!