Finally — An AI Tool That Works

My review of the Plaud Note and NotePin

Image courtesy of author

I don’t know about you, but I’m rather bored of what I now consider generic AI ‘stuff’ for consumers. We can edit our photos in ways that often defy logic. We can click a button and watch as our waffle turns into perfectly-constructed prose. Five-hundred-word PDFs can be converted into digestible bullet points in seconds.

But I bet you rarely find a use case for this stuff. I certainly struggle too.

I’ve always maintained that artificial intelligence is at its best when you don’t realise it’s there. We’ve had this for years in smartphones and within operating systems. Perfectly exposed photos can be taken by complete amateurs with one click of the shutter button. An indication of the travel time to my likely next destination appears automatically on my phone, just when I realise I need it. That stuff is useful, but you never have to think about it. And that’s why it’s so great.

This year has seen some pretty spectacular AI product failures. The Humane AI Pin and Rabbit R1 are perhaps the most notable examples of things that no one asked for. For a reason.

However, I’ve been testing two AI-infused gadgets that seem to understand exactly what their intended audience wants. Say hello to the Plaud Note and NotePin.