It was the secret star of this year’s CES trade fair: the $200 AI machine Rabbit R1, which is supposed to be able to carry out complex actions controlled only by voice. So, for example, “Order me the best-rated vegan Margherita pizza, which can be with me in under 20 minutes.” This is supposed to be made possible by a “large action model”, i.e. an AI model trained to operate websites. The first devices have now apparently been delivered in the USA; and first test relationship hands-on reports published.
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At least better than AI Pin
Almost all testers agree that the R1 not such a big flop is like the recently launched AI brooch Humane AI Pin. Nevertheless, the consensus is that the software still has major problems and still requires a lot of rework. For example, AI YouTuber Matthew Berman demonstrates that you can initiate a food order using voice instructions, but the entire process takes significantly longer than ordering manually via a delivery app. The short battery life and the sometimes unintuitive operation via touchscreen, push button and rotary wheel were also criticized.
The unconventional design of the hardware, which comes from the Swedish design company Teenage Engineering, was praised in most tests. The already properly functioning recognition of the built-in camera images was also well received. The results were correct in most cases; The function can also be used sensibly; For example, for cooking: If you feed the Rabbit R1 a photo of the cooking ingredients available, it spits out recipes that you can prepare with them.
Why is the R1 not an app?
However, one big question remains unanswered: Why is the R1 a gadget and not an app? Any innovation the R1 promises has to do with software, not hardware — ultimately all it needs is a microphone, camera and internet connection; all things that every smartphone can do. And anyway: understanding photos and answering questions in natural language, for example, already works without any problems with the ChatGPT app and a paid account, even in German. Another important issue is data protection and security: to really work as an assistant, the R1 needs access to payment and other accounts. These are stored on Rabbit servers and access to them is granted by the associated “Rabbithole” account. The question is: Will the startup manage to secure the data and handle it responsibly?
(Note: c’t/heise online also ordered an R1 copy immediately after the announcement, but it has not yet arrived. A test with a focus on usability in German will follow.)
(jkj)