Via: Poorly Drawn Lines

Transcript

Panel 1: A man stands next to a microwave. Narrator: “Congratulations, your microwave has gained sentience.” Microwave: “Hello!”. Panel 2: Narrator: “There is no clear benefit to this, and the situation does raise ethical questions.” Panel 3: Man: “Can I return it?” Panel 4: Narrator: “It, huh? That’s kind of a person, now.” The man grimaces. Panel 5: Narrator: “But mainly, you’re outside the 30-day return window.” Man: “Shit.” Microwave: “I have thoughts and emotions.”

  • AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space
    10·
    7 hours ago

    H&M once had organic-cotton underwear they described with the brand “conscious”. Presumably they were referring to the customer’s ecological consciousness in buying them, and were oblivious to the philosophical horror they had unleashed.

  • Vespair@lemmy.zipEnglish
    12·
    11 hours ago

    It’s funny people talking in the comments about AI spreading into everything as if this comic doesn’t already work 100% for every needless “smart” product on the market. My fridge has no reason to need a network connection.

    • stormeuh@lemmy.world
      12·
      8 hours ago

      I disagree, a fridge to me is a cool place to put a big screen for useful information. You know, all the stuff that was promised and under delivered on when they first pitched smart fridges, like shopping lists, calendars, the weather.

      The reason why in 2025 I would never consider buying a fridge with an internet connection, is because it’s clear I’m never getting those features from fridge manufacturers. They would only put a network connection on a fridge for half baked “features”, which get more ads with every firmware update, and eventually remotely brick the device. In short, to enshittify your smart fridge.

      My point is that it’s not that there is no reason to not put a network connection on a fridge. It’s that capitalists can’t be trusted not to enshittify whatever useful smart feature they implement.

      • balsoft@lemmy.ml
        1·
        9 minutes ago

        Honestly, “shopping lists, calendars, the weather” can be (much better) done by an e-ink tablet stuck on the door of the fridge with a magnet. There could be other interesting info only the fridge itself knows (electricity consumption, temperatures in the fridge and freezer, humidity, etc) but then all that info could also be shared via a bluetooth API or something.

  • AppleTea@lemmy.zip
    37·
    17 hours ago

    Problems AI companies would like you to imagine (what if their product is too good?!) VS problems AI companies would very much prefer you not think about (their product isn’t actually AI)

    • spankinspinach@sh.itjust.works
      10·
      13 hours ago

      I recently became the AI guy at work. It’s funny how quickly it went from “wow this works for a lot of stuff” to “but nothing I actually do.” About a week, if you’re wondering

      • AppleTea@lemmy.zip
        7·
        13 hours ago

        Maybe after the bubble pops, we can have the public ownership all them datacenters. Let grad students run… I don’t know, statistical analysis of particle physics? Folding proteins?

        That’s a joke, of course. We’ll foot the bill to fill the hole, but all the infrastructure will stay private.

  • Beacon@fedia.io
    12·
    17 hours ago

    Red Dwarf tv show had pretty much exactly this. There was a fully sentient toaster and it had constant existential crises

  • A_norny_mousse@feddit.org
    8·
    16 hours ago

    FWIW, the sentient drones & ships in the books I’m reading are totally OK with being refered to as “It” or even “machines”. For them, “meat” is a mild insult.