Why speak your Siri commands when you can think them instead? [Video]
A group of hackers claim to have discovered a way to control Siri with only their thoughts. Is this amazing tech or an elaborate hoax?
Think it, speak it, do it. That’s the age-old way of accomplishing goals, and also the way people interact with the iPhone’s new voice-controlled Siri feature. But what if you could skip the “speak it” part and simply think it and then do it. That’s what a group of British hackers claim to have done with their patchwork – and perhaps, fake? – hack of the iPhone 4S.
The men behind Project Black Mirror, first spotted by IntoMobile, say that they have discovered a way to control Siri without having to actually speak to Apple’s sassy new voice search and command feature. Instead, their hack uses ECG pads to recognize brain patterns that have been recorded and mapped into a program that can recognize the patterns. The pads are fed into an Arduino board, which goes to a program that filters the signal, detects the pattern, sends the command to a SpeakJet speech synthesizer chip, and then goes into the headphone jack of the iPhone to send the command to Siri. To make a complicated process simple: the user thinks “Call Lee” and the brain patterns are sent as a command that Siri will be able to understand. It then dials Lee’s phone number.
It all sounds amazing and exciting, but like anything you see on the Internet today, it’s not easy to believe. Commenters and a few sharp-eyed bloggers are calling foul on Project Black Mirror demo videos, claiming that the SpeakJet chip, a critical part of the hack, is not actually connected to anything. How could the group possibly be sending commands to Siri without properly setting-up the chip that supposedly translates the brain patterns to commands the iPhone can actually understand?
Is this a poorly-described set-up, misunderstanding of the implementation, or all just an elaborate hoax to gain Internet fame and money? (A Kickstarter page related to the project is forthcoming.) Watch the video and decide for yourself.
For my money, this is an interesting concept of what could happen, not what’s actually happening. Long before the Wii, Kinect, and Move, I thought recognized brain waves would be the way that users were freed from traditional device controllers. So the thought of a few guys in a spare bedroom figuring out a way to deliver mind control to an iPhone, however elementary and messy the process, is an idea that’s easy to get excited about. I instantly think, “Well if these guys can do it, imagine what Microsoft or Apple could do with all of its money and manpower!”
I’d love to believe that Project Black Mirror is legit and not an Internet hoax or scheme, but I’ve been burnt by too many viral videos to fully trust them just yet. However, I would be ecstatic to learn that my skepticism was unfounded. Then I’d be one step closer to sending the hackers an apologetic e-mail – using my mind instead of a keyboard.
This looks like a bunch of smoke and mirrors, so I called a few of my profs of whom one is a triple PhD doing research in neuroplasticity and mapping. He says the video is highly suspect. And, ya right they want funding, not my wallet, the names Tucker not Sucker, lol.
If they had any credibility they’d run to an university that supports neurosciences research and development. Where the process can be studied and verified, patented if possible, trade marked and then monetized. Anybody doing R&D is well aware of these necessary procedures.
if they did then the university would ask for a cut and they could lose alot of money and they said its not fully complaete yet with the way and speed techonogly is advanceing now im not surpirised this has happened
I thought your name was Phil
Didn’t they try that in “Batman Forever”!! LMFAO! What a STUPID idea!! Haven’t they got better things to do????
“Stupid”? Hardly.
If it weren’t for people trying “stupid” things then you, dear mossy, would still be writing your inane postings by candlelight on parchment using a quill.
Open you mind.
The practical implications of using brainwaves to control an electronic device are not yet fully realized. Perhaps someone seeing this will be inspired to actually do something productive with the technology – say allow someone with ALS to have a little more interactivity with their environment?
As for the video: Its a teaser. It confirms nothing and lacks substantive information. I’m thinking that this mob won’t find a lot of funding in the near future, but if they present an actual proposal they may get picked-up by a larger research outfit.
With respect to Phil’s running to the University: Universities respect only one thing: Money coming in. I bet none of these blokes has his PhD. and nobody at a University, especially those employing multi-papered prima-donnas, is going to even pay a minute’s attention to any of them.
Dear “i care” You make a good point! Thank-you. I would just not like to see this technology warped into something evil and used for dishonest purposes! And while it DID seem stupid at first, I am big enough to see your side of the argument!!!! Thanks for the eye-opening comment!
I didn’t even bother watching it. First of all, if they really figured this thing out, they would have patented it and run to Microsoft or Apple to cash in. Secondly his would be on the Discovery Channel, CP24 and CBC not YouTube/MSN! ROFL
I call bullsh*t with the matrix code on the laptop screen and the knight rider lights it just looks like they were bored. FAKE!
It may just be a hoax…but it may be the real deal too. Keep in mind many big technology companies got there starts in their garage or basement. It is possible nowadays!!
Ha ha ha ha,,,,ho ho ho,ha ha ha ha ha ha…hee hee ha ha ha ho ho ho ha ha ha ha……more useless hope for all the morons who pray to the almighty awful Apple Iphone who think they own the do all and end all in communications devices…..it’s about time they all realized it’s just a toy phone with lots of games on it for kids who can’t grown up……kiss my apps mind readers!!!!!!….ha ha ha ha…….stay tuned for the Apple Iphone 15-WTF release in the near future….after all….you morons have to pay their bills.
There’s a constructive comment: #FAIL
I take it you don’t like the iPhone Bobby? Good to know. I couldn’t have slept through the night not knowing that.
Wow, well the green matrix-like flow of numbers on their screen has no purpose. Anyone can do it by a simple code in notepad as seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHbRryBqv_c Clearly it was added in to make it look cool to trick people.
do you guys have girlfriends?
whats the name of that song on his phone?
We No Speak Americano or Pa Panamericano by Yolanda Be Cool, its really popular.
Thank you so much it was driving me crazy!
A headset that reads your brainwaves…
See Ted Talks:
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/tan_le_a_headset_that_reads_your_brainwaves.html
It’s already been done. Using your thoughts to control your iPod was probably on last years model in Korea.
Come on guys you all know it takes a lot of time and money to do an IP (intellectual property) search and then a patent and copyright by a reputable law firm. You’re better off spending it on R&D and then getting the product out to market. The reason this is such an amazing idea is that it has a lot of military applications where split second decision making is necessary and most often a life and death situation. This is not a stupid idea however is this a hoax or the real thing…that remains to be proven.
Smoke & Mirrors, very poor try to BS people.
1.
Do not believe, it a total hoax they are using a solderless breadboard and
have the 20pin chip & TO220 package on the board with only 1 red wire?
2.
Look at the breadboard and they have the 20 pin IC plugged in so that the side 1-10 cannot even connect to anything, no wires?
3.
The board with the USB has a VDC input connector with nothing connected where does the power come from?
I am sure there are a few more things I can pick out if watched a few times but its not needed and is a waste of time!
With over 30 years of electronic engineering experience and this gave me
laugh tonight :)
One more thing if you look at the IC mounted on the solderless breadboard,
you have every used one in your life you will know what I mean.
The pins on the IC are all shorted out a the buss is common either side of
the center groove down the board. There are pins that are in free air in
the center of the board, and so on, and so on………..