Musk's Ex-Girlfriend Grimes Collaborates with Toy Company to Launch AI Plush Toy Series
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Musk's ex-girlfriend Grimes has partnered with toy company Curio to launch a series of interactive AI plush toys, with the first one named Grok. These toys feature the ability to converse with children and 'learn' their owners' personalities, developed in collaboration with OpenAI. Grimes not only provided voiceovers for the three toys but also serves as an investor and advisor for the product.
The three plush toys are named Gabbo, Grem, and Grok, unrelated to Elon Musk's former partner Grimes' AI chatbot Grok. Curio told The Post that the AI plush toy Grok has no connection to the chatbot Grok but is instead an abbreviation of the word 'Grocket.' Grimes explained that this name was inspired by her and Musk's children growing up near SpaceX rockets.
Curio co-founder Misha Sallee stated that the personalities of these three characters are built on OpenAI's language model: 'Grok is a friendly rocket that loves to dance but cannot fly. Grem is an alien obsessed with pink. Gabbo is a curious, Pinocchio-like character always looking for new friends.'
据Sallee称，这些玩具目前有一个模式，即“甜美、友好、幽默的性格，适合儿童”，但公司正在测试beta版功能，允许父母设置更多偏好。
根据美国专利和商标局的数据库，Curio于2023年9月12日申请注册“Grok”商标，尽管申请仍在等待批准。然而，他们似乎比Musk旗下的xAI更早一步，后者直到2023年10月27日才为Grok聊天机器人申请商标。
Grimes与Curio的合作起源于X平台的一篇帖子，该平台用户Roon在2023年4月发表了一篇关于未来“每一件东西”都将“智能化”的帖子，包括儿童玩偶。Grimes对这篇帖子做出了回应，表示如果安全的话，“这将是很棒的。育儿很难，我希望我的孩子们能与类似文化飞船思维的玩偶一起玩，哈哈，这可能太难了...”
In a conversation published on the toy company's blog, Roon, Grimes, and Sallee discussed the potential impact of AI toys on human behavior and the possibility of reducing screen dependency. Grimes stated, "I truly believe this is also the first step to reducing screen time... I think when you remove screens, the human mind becomes more effective, and people don't fall into a constant dopamine-chasing state, which affects other aspects of their lives. I feel we've already passed the decade where screens became a significant part of daily life and consumed many hours of people's time."
Currently, these AI toys require Wi-Fi connectivity to function, but the founders aim to integrate all hardware and software within the toys themselves. The toys will come with an app that provides parents with transcripts of their children's conversations. The company told The Post that the toys will not store any voice data, complying with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Transcripts will be deleted after 90 days.
These AI toys are now available for pre-order on the Curio website at $99 each. Those who place orders before December 17 will receive a golden ticket before Christmas, previewing upcoming products. The first shipments are expected to begin in early 2024.