- Nissan has announced a new AI companion known as Eporo.
- It combines a physical figurine with a bird-like digital avatar.
- The hybrid design is supposed to create a bond with users.
Automakers have embraced artificial intelligence and a handful have gone further by introducing AI companions. Nissan is now joining them with a system that features a bird-like avatar known as Eporo.
Billed as a generative AI in-car agent, Eporo is like a digital copilot that can suggest destinations as well as tell you information about your surroundings. Users can also learn about the weather and have natural language conversations with the system.
More: Ford CEO Says Every Car Should Have An AI Assistant
While that’s pretty much par the course for an AI assistant these days, Eporo takes things a bit further as it’s activated by placing a figurine on the dashboard. This apparently fires up an app on your smartphone that brings the avatar to life.
As you can see in the video, the phone’s display acts like a mirror as it shows an animated version of Eporo responding to your commands by opening his eyes and moving his mouth when he speaks.
It’s an odd approach to things and the video is accompanied by a text message-style log of your conversation.
The combination of a figurine and a digital avatar is supposed to create a “sense of intimacy” as well as give Eporo a “physical presence.”
While the clip shows a bird-like design, Nissan also mentioned other versions including Samurai Eporo and Uncle Eporo. Each of these has their own personality and speaking style. Customers can also use the app to create all-new characters from photos.
Nissan Goes Old School
In other Japan Mobility Show news, Nissan will introduce a Diorama Navi that has been installed in the back of an autonomous driving prototype.
As the name suggests, it’s a three-dimensional diorama with pea-sized model cars that light up and move around a recreated miniature town. That’s cool by itself, but the diorama is designed to show your current location in real time.
The diorama is accompanied by a retro-inspired audio system, which “deliberately incorporates knobs and push buttons” for physical control. These are designed to bring back the “fun of operation” that has been lost in a world dominated by touchscreens.
