When Uber came into existence, many doubted it and thought that the concept would never work, but it has proven itself to be overly successful. Others have tried to duplicate its success and some believe they can even just use parts of it to succeed in other walks of life. That is where help comes in for those who have a scheduling conflict, can’t be somewhere, or have social anxiety and it is the “Human Uber.”
It may sound strange, but the weirder thing is that it is exactly what it sounds like.
Earlier this year, the idea and concept of the Human Uber were introduced at MIT Tech Review’s EmTech, which stands for “emerging technology.” As reported by NY Mag , the creation came from Jun Rekimoto, who is an AR/VR researcher affiliated with Sony in Japan.
The technology is known as “ChameleonMask,” and it’s hard to ignore why it is actually called that. The Human Uber is actually going to be used as a stand-in for someone who can’t be somewhere they need to be.
The Human Uber, aka ChameleonMask, “uses a real human as a surrogate for another remote user. To do this, a surrogate user wears a mask-shaped display that shows a remote user’s live face, and a voice channel transmits a remote user’s voice.”
It’s disturbing and weird to look at and it may not seem overly feasible, but it does have some usefulness.
“Human Uber,” developed in Japan, provides a way to attend events remotely using another person’s body. “It’s surprisingly natural” says its inventor, Jin Rekimoto of Sony #emtechasia pic.twitter.com/WZHPVcZ6M0
— Will Knight (@willknight) January 30, 2018
As you can see in the pictures above, the Human Uber literally has the user’s face on an iPad from wherever they happen to be. The person they have hired will appear for them at an event or function and be their “body” while there.
Through the use of Facetime, Skype, or some other such program, the person who can’t be there will still be able to speak, interact, and “attend” the event.
Rekimoto explained it a bit more on his website Rekimoto Lab and detailed just how it works for those using the Human Uber.
While it makes a lot of sense and could be helpful for the person who can’t attend a certain event, one would have to wonder about the other person involved. That would be the person wearing the iPad attached to their helmet or face and having to simply stare at the back of a tablet for a set amount of hours.
From IoT to IoA (Internet of Abilities)? Check out the “human Uber” example discussed at #emtechasia pic.twitter.com/ojIzkrPtv5
— Haley (@haleyross_) January 31, 2018
It’s not yet known if the Human Uber will end up becoming a reality that is a full-on business or used by a lot of people, but the possibility is there. There are always times when a scheduling conflict arises or something comes up or someone simply has a problem interacting with large groups. That is where the ChamelonMask may actually end up being overly perfect even though it does appear and look a bit strange.
