Medical AIs with human faces are on their way

ASKED ABOUT the future of artificially intelligent avatars in medicine, Nova is optimistic, as well she might be. As a “brand ambassador” for Soul Machines, based in Auckland, the hub of New Zealand’s visual-effects industry, it is her job to play up the “personalised and interactive” experiences such avatars will provide as they help with virtual consultations and assist with post-operative rehabilitation. As she explains this to your correspondent online she looks me in the eye and responds to what I say with approving nods and smiles. Told I have been off colour since my last meal, she says “Oh no!” with a concerned frown before suggesting ginger tea or some over-the-counter medication. The wide blue ribbon she wears over her right shoulder, she tells me, is a “symbol of my existence as a digital person and my connection to Soul Machines, the company that created me”.