![]() ![]() The idea is not as far-fetched as it may seem. MeowTalk is the product of a growing interest in enlisting additional intelligences - machine-learning algorithms - to decode animal communication. My TikTok feed brims with videos of Bunny, a sheepadoodle who has learned to press sound buttons that play prerecorded phrases like “outside,” “scritches” and “love you.” ![]() Pets - with which we share our homes but not a common language - are particularly tempting targets. Scientists have taught sign language to great apes, chatted with grey parrots and even tried to teach English to bottlenose dolphins. The urge to converse with animals is age-old, long predating the time when smartphones became our best friends. Then: “Let me rest.” (The ads disappeared after I upgraded to a premium account.) Upon seeing me, Momo meowed and then purred. But MeowTalk provided a more plausible translation about a week later, when I returned from a four-day trip. He says they have their own words for things like predators and colors, and he's pretty convinced that other animals are using similar "languages." In fact, Slobodchikoff is so convinced of this that he's trying to raise money to develop a dog and cat translation device.I was dubious. He used AI to analyze the calls of prairie dogs, discovering that they have a "sophisticated communication system" that seems like their own language. Higham has pointed out the work of Con Slobodchikoff, professor emeritus at the Department of Biological Sciences at Northern Arizona University, who has been studying the behavior of prairie dogs for the last 30 years. With today's technological advances, researchers aren't ruling out the possibility that they can make this work - and they already are, in some small ways. While the technology doesn't exist just yet, there's a good chance that it will sometime in the near future. The amount of money now spent on pets - they are becoming fur babies to so many people - means there is huge consumer demand for this. Co-author of the report and futurologist William Higham said, "Innovative products that succeed are based around a genuine and major consumer needs. Additionally, an Amazon-sponsored report in The Next Big Thing looked at future trends released last summer, and predicted that we could have a translator pets in 10 years. This has been in development for a while: Scientists have been using one AI system to listen to marmoset monkeys, and one to read sheeps' faces to figure out if they are in pain. The thought of being able to understand a dog's bark is extremely exciting. According to NBC News, "With the help of AI, scientists are learning how to translate animals' vocalizations and facial expressions into something we can understand." That's more than a little exciting, especially for those who can't get enough of their pets. Here's the deal: Advances in artificial intelligence suggest that scientists might eventually figure out how to translate what our pets are saying with the noises they make - in a limited way, anyway. But will the possibility of understanding the noises your pet is making be there? One day, yes. Will you, a year from now, be able to sit down and have a conversation with your dog over a spread of bacon biscuits and tea? As amazing as that sounds, no, unfortunately you won't. Well, OK, this might not go exactly how you're probably hoping it will go. Yes, it's true: Scientists are working on a pet translator, and it could mean that you might finally be able to actually understand what your dog is trying to say. Scientists are finally working on something we've always dreamed about but could never imagine becoming a reality: The ability to have a talk to our pets. This is it, guys - this is the future we've been waiting for. ![]()
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