Chapter 51: Old Luo’s Shock
Chapter 51: Old Luo’s Shock
Zhao Min looked at the information Chen Mo sent over, and her expression became serious.
Smart Assistant.
According to Chen Mo’s introduction, this Smart Assistant could open apps, close apps, browse apps, take voice input, search, chat, and let users control the phone completely with their voice.
Everyone knew about Apple’s built-in assistant, Siri. But Siri couldn’t browse or control apps. This Smart Assistant could. Stronger than Apple’s Siri — that was huge.
Wasn’t this Artificial Intelligence?
Apple had bought Siri for two hundred million dollars. After years of upgrades, they’d achieved the current level. Now, Chen Mo suddenly created this better assistant. If released, it would make waves.
After composing herself, Zhao Min copied the Smart Assistant’s Source Code and the Army Ant System code embedded with the assistant onto a USB drive. She deleted the email completely and left her office.
“Xiaoyu, come with me.”
“Okay.” Xiaoyu didn’t ask questions. She put down the files she was holding and quickly followed Zhao Min.
When Zhao Min entered the R&D department’s work area, the staff stirred a little. It wasn’t every day the President came here. Soon, Old Luo and Wang Sijia walked over in their lab coats.
“President, you needed me in such a hurry?” Seeing Zhao Min’s stern look, Old Luo became serious too.
“You two, go to the Laboratory. Test what’s inside this.” Zhao Min handed the USB drive to Old Luo.
“Right away.”
Old Luo carefully took the USB. He led the way toward the Laboratory. Anything important enough for Zhao Min to personally deliver must be highly significant.
“Xiaoyu, you come too.”
“Sister Zhao, is it okay for me to come?” Xiaoyu was smart. She knew this involved something important.
“It’s fine. Come along and see more.”
Zhao Min motioned for Xiaoyu to follow her into the Laboratory behind Old Luo and Wang Sijia.
After opening the files on the USB drive, Old Luo and Wang Sijia began examining them meticulously.
Laymen watch for fun, but experts watch for skill.
Zhao Min could only grasp Chen Mo’s simple descriptions and the Assistant’s functions. The technical terms went over her head. Old Luo and Wang Sijia were professionals. Seeing certain aspects of the code, their faces immediately turned grave.
“Wait, let me grab a phone to test this.”
Wang Sijia rushed out and quickly returned with a Butterfly Eye Phone, handing it to Old Luo. While waiting for the system to install, both glanced at Xiaoyu, hesitant to speak.
“President… her?”
“She’s not an outsider. Say what you need to,” Zhao Min said.
“President, are we conducting Artificial Intelligence research?”
As head of R&D, Old Luo had to ask. The department was his responsibility, yet he knew nothing about the technology behind this Smart Assistant.
“No,” Zhao Min shook her head.
“Then where did these materials come from?” Old Luo frowned.
“The Chairman developed them.” Zhao Min glanced at Xiaoyu beside her. “I have no way of knowing about his research.”
Xiaoyu felt confused by Zhao Min’s look.
“Impossible.” Old Luo shook his head. “How could one person develop something this advanced alone? This falls under Artificial Intelligence.”
Xiaoyu gasped beside them. She hadn’t imagined that on her first day at work, the President would involve her in such core company secrets.
“For him, nothing is impossible. The Army Ant System came from him too. He does the work of two teams. How else do you think this company grew so fast?”
“Does the Chairman have a team behind him?” Old Luo still couldn’t believe it; his mind buzzed with shock.
“The Chairman’s affairs are not our concern,” Zhao Min’s expression darkened.
Old Luo realized he’d overstepped and dropped the subject. If the Chairman really created this alone, he couldn’t fathom what kind of genius monster he was.
“I was out of line. This material just took me by surprise,” Old Luo apologized.
“Let’s do a quick test of the Smart Assistant’s capabilities.”
Wang Sijia steered the conversation back. She picked up the Butterfly Eye Phone now running the new system and eagerly activated the Smart Assistant.
“Please complete voiceprint identification.”
As soon as Wang Sijia turned on the Smart Assistant, a synthesized female voice came from the phone. Once the voice identification succeeded, she entered her own name as the preferred form of address.
“JiaJia, this is Xiao Die, your Butterfly Eye Smart Phone assistant. I am happy to be at your service.”
After confirming her name, the interface vanished, returning the phone to its normal home screen. The Smart Assistant seemed gone.
“Make a call.”
“No SIM card. Only emergency calls are possible.” Xiao Die’s voice responded instantly after Wang Sijia spoke.
“Connect to WiFi.”
“Wireless network interface entered. WiFi on. Please select. WiFi connected. Signal strength good.”
“Open the browser.” Wang Sijia continued.
As soon as she finished speaking, the phone jumped to the browser page. “Browser opened.”
“Open the technology news channel.”
…
Wang Sijia gave command after command. She could open videos, close videos, browse articles — all without touching the phone. The only limit was that her words needed to match text visible on the phone’s screen.
Even after she stopped testing, Wang Sijia felt amazed.
Xiao Die’s functions surpassed any known mobile assistant. This was definitely in the realm of Artificial Intelligence.
“The front-end technology and user interaction are excellent. Speech recognition is highly accurate. Its capabilities surpass Apple’s Siri,” Old Luo analyzed while watching Wang Sijia’s test, his face showing delight. “Siri can’t close or control apps. It only recognizes commands within its own interface.”
“Xiao Die runs in the background, controlling the system and apps. It enables true touch-free voice operation. It’s an outstanding smart assistant.”
“You understand its value, President?”
“Using the motherboard and design schematics I brought today, build prototype samples of our second phone model for testing as fast as possible. Also, package the Smart Assistant as a paid software application. Change its icon to the Butterfly Eye logo,” Zhao Min instructed. “Prepare a PowerPoint presentation for the Smart Assistant.”
“A PowerPoint? What for?” Wang Sijia asked.
“For the launch event.”
“Understood,” Old Luo said.
“Secure the materials.” Zhao Min finished speaking, pulled out the USB drive, and left with Xiaoyu.
“Xiaoyu, notify the Marketing Department. Have them prepare the promotional plan for the second phone and get it to me. Also, tell Director Li to assign someone to organize the launch event at top speed,” Zhao Min said immediately upon leaving the Laboratory.
“Yes,” Xiaoyu nodded.
Back in her Office, Zhao Min dialed Chen Mo’s number. This guy suddenly tossing her this voice assistant had nearly thrown her off balance.
“Chairman, are you researching Artificial Intelligence?” Zhao Min asked the moment the call connected. Chen Mo quietly creating this today had shaken her. Its importance easily matched the Army Ant System.
“Why do you ask?” Chen Mo sounded puzzled.
“That Smart Assistant you sent over. Didn’t you know?” Zhao Min felt exasperated.
“Oh, that Assistant? It’s the key feature for the next phone,” Chen Mo explained. “Its functions are limited to controlling the phone right now. Though, I might optimize it for computers later.”
“The second phone launch is still a while away. I plan to release the Smart Assistant first as a standalone app,” Zhao Min proposed. “Build its reputation and user experience. Then, I’ll take it down right before the phone hits the market.”
“Fine by me. I handle the product. How to make money is your job.”
After talking briefly with Zhao Min, Chen Mo hung up. He picked up a book beside him and began reading quietly. With the lab still unfinished and no major tech projects on hand, he had a rare moment of leisure. Reading seemed a good use of the time.
Besides, he was only halfway through his goal of reading a thousand books. He wanted to finish that target as soon as possible.