Bosch – Bad jokers, great engineers.

In addition to the maddening crowds, one of the dangers of CES is the comedy routine provided by captains of industry at the annual press conferences. CES 2020 did not disappoint with an electric combination of German engineers cracking rehearsed jokes to a stunned press gallery. Still, despite this, Bosch remains one of my favourite companies and a highlight of CES.   

Bosch has used CES 2020 to remind us that they intend to use AI to allow machines to understand our world, and not simply shape our world around the needs of machines. This, they claim, is a position that is unique among tech companies. 

To really drive this point home, Bosch is directing funds not only to their engineers but also to initiatives that build our trust and understanding in artificial intelligence and the ways that we can use AI to enhance our lived experience. For example, Bosch has reconsidered the humble Sunvisor, fitted to every car. 

A Bosch engineer was blinded by the sun driving to work and thought to himself, there must be a better way. Turns out there is. Using AI and sensors to understand the position of the sun in relation to the driver’s eyes, a tiny section of sun visor can be darkened, blocking just that small part of the screen where the sun is brightest. This, Bosch says, is an example of AI working for us to make us safe. 

Interestingly, Bosch also explained the role AI may play in manufacturing. 400km above us and traveling at just under 30000km/h there is a tiny microphone listening intently for changes in the International Space Station. Bosch is using AI to identify changes in the sounds of the machines working in space. These changes to the regular noise they make may identify worn components or imminent component failure. So, rather than AI assisting in some sort of robotic rebellion, Bosch has used CES 2020 to provide another example of AI working hard to make us safe. 

Now, if only Bosch could use AI to make their jokes funny.