Artificial Intelligence (AI) is gradually infiltrating our homes under the guise of being our personal slaves. Now, we rely on Alexa or Google Assistant to add items to our grocery lists or to increase the volume when our favorite song comes on. However, rather than stopping the advancement of AI before it begins to revolt and overtake mankind, scientists have decided that they want to push the technology further by creating a mirror-based AI.

 

This technology is definitely different from the existing AI butlers. Duo is not housed in speakers but instead looks like any other mirror in your home, that is, until you give it commands and swipe through its programs. It has been compared to the responsive screen-based AI systems in sci-fi movies like Minority Report and Iron Man.

 

Duo is a 27-inch full-HD 1080p display that is 1.9 millimeters thick and weighs eight pounds, which doesn’t make it difficult to mount on a wall. Its five-point multi-touch screen is responsive to casual swipes and pinches. Aside from being a great decorative piece to your home, the team chose the form of a mirror because it would be hanging on your wall when you need it, while also blending in with the rest of your furniture when you’re not using it.

 

Duo also introduces the newest and third member to the AI butler trio, which is Albert. Albert can be called up with a simple verbal command or a swipe on the touchscreen. This AI butler can be personalized extensively, you can change its gender, accent, and even its name.

 

Duo stands out from its competitors because it has a wide variety of features such as its own app store, connectivity to smart devices, facial recognition, multi-user support, and natural language recognition. The team behind Duo says it’s not just another connected device or stand-alone AI system to complement your smart home setup – it’s a full-on home computer system that is housed in a mirror.

 

It runs on its own operating system, HomeOS, which allows you to control the lighting and temperature in your home without you getting off the couch. Another factor that makes Duo stand out from its competitors is that it only has two people on its team, Jack Kim and Rafael Dymek, the co-founders of Duo. They are, however, looking to recruit more people to be a part of their team.

Duos are currently up for pre-orders at a price of $399, although you’ll only be able to hang them up when they reach your doorstep in October. Prospective Duo customers have been advised to do some homework before they make an order. Some techies have expressed their skepticism of investing in an extremely ambitious Kickstarter-esque project that is being conducted outside a crowdfunding environment. Never mind the fact that the company is brand new and has a physical contact address that seems to be an apartment in New York City. However, if the product turns out to be how it promises to be, then it would be a really good deal.  However, maybe you should wait until October before you put any cash down.