While the Pagely team usually avoids jumping on trends just for the sake of staying trendy, we’re throwing caution to the wind and going all in on AI (Artificial Intelligence.)
Side note: This choice beat out several other ideas, including a WordPress Cryptocurrency called ‘PressCoin,’ which we forked into our AI project. Two-fer.
Meet Keith, the street-wise grandson of IBM’s Watson and coherent cousin of Apple’s Siri. Keith is the product of dedicating half our engineering resources and thousands of hours spanning the last 4 years.
What is Keith AI?
On the surface, Keith is as close to sentience on the web as any company or dorm room project has achieved to date. Dig a little deeper, though, and you’ll find a charismatic genius with slight ADD and a love for WordPress.
By marrying blockchain technology with Pagely’s powerful web server infrastructure, Keith lives everywhere and nowhere. The code and hardware that bring Keith to life are distributed across the globe, and so like KITT from Knight Rider, he’s all around you, Michael.
Why Keith?
For the name: I have no idea. The engineering team came up with the name, and when I asked where ‘Keith’ came from, the response was ‘an AI naming engine.’ Which leads me to believe that their new life goal is to create an endless loop for anyone that tries to track down the origin story of Keith.
As for the concept itself: the answer we unanimously agreed on was ‘because we can.’
Was the iPad solving some missing need when it first came to market? Did the American drive to put a man on the moon have any other goal than to be the first country to get there? Did Pizza Hut listen to naysayers or their legal team when they created the world’s first hot dog stuffed pizza crust?
No.
‘Why?’ is normally a great question, but sometimes ‘why not?’ is the greater question.
Can I Talk to Keith?
Yes! Keith is currently plugged into a Twitter account, and you can reach him here: @KeithPagely
Ask him anything, especially if your question is related to the world of WordPress, and here are some ideas to get you started:
- What’s your favorite beverage?
- How do you feel about Gutenberg? (specify which one: Steve, Johannes or the WordPress editing experience)
- If the universe is both infinite and expanding, does it have an edge?
One word of caution: many of today’s greatest minds, from the late Stephen Hawking to Gary Busey, have warned us about the potential tipping point when AI takes over our planet and enslaves us ‘for our own good.’
So go easy on Keith. And have fun! But seriously, tread lightly…