Gold's Grand Debut
The Prometheus Project had been hosting the IDDC for eight years now, an annual event where new products and services were unveiled. While major upgrades to the Android OS and the fifth-generation Android smartphone had become staples of the conference, the excitement had begun to fade. It felt almost unfair to call the work of hundreds or even thousands of the world's finest developers "stale" when they had spent two years building upon the vision of Yoo Jae-won, a singular existence in this world. After all, the Android smartphone ecosystem, including compatible devices, represented a market exceeding one hundred billion dollars, and the Android OS itself generated nearly five billion dollars in annual revenue.
The upcoming Android OS release focused on future-oriented hardware support and deeper integration with smartphones. The new smartphone model featured upgraded specifications along with added conveniences such as waterproofing, wireless charging, and fingerprint recognition. Software enhancements were equally impressive. Each feature was remarkable on its own, yet the overall impression remained too similar to its predecessor. At least the Xbox game console and its titles, now only in their second generation, still carried a sense of freshness. The fierce rivalry with the PlayStation 3, in particular, continued to rage even a year after its launch.
The fanboy wars between the two camps burned with an intensity that bordered on obsession. Xbox 2 supporters boasted that their console's raw performance overwhelmed the PlayStation 3, pointing to clear differences in visual quality and smoothness. In response, PlayStation 3 fans attacked the Xbox 2's lack of exclusive titles and its underpowered optical drive. As a late entrant compared to Sony, ID Group had struggled to secure first-party games, and many Xbox 2 titles were also released on PC. Still, The Pacific had delivered a massive blow. The game not only sparked controversy over war crimes but also swept every major award at last year's game ceremonies. Even so, EA's release of Medal of Honor on the PlayStation 3 and Activision's Call of Duty on both platforms had flooded the market with World War II shooters, slightly reducing The Pacific's concurrent player numbers.
Yoo Jae-won understood this dynamic well. That was why he had prepared multiple major announcements for this IDDC. Yet today, on the most important first day, he stepped onto the stage empty-handed. This was no surrender. Though the thorium reactor had consumed his attention throughout the first half of 2005, he had sharpened his blade to prove to the media and skeptical netizens that the IDDC was no longer a stale conference. Now it was time to draw that blade.
"I must first apologize to those who came expecting the 2005 version of the Android OS or the Android S5 smartphone," Yoo Jae-won began. A murmur rippled through the main stage audience. Half had purchased tickets hoping for the PC version of the Android OS, while the other half had anticipated the S5.
"Both products were developed with the utmost effort by their teams. I have no doubt they will bring great satisfaction to their buyers. Unfortunately, they will not be the stars of the first day. There was a friend who has been waiting for this moment for a very long time."
Waiting for a very long time? Curiosity stirred among the crowd. What kind of product could possibly push ID Group's one-two punch aside?
"Allow me to introduce it," Yoo Jae-won said, wasting no time on lengthy preliminaries. "Born from fifteen years of machine learning, the general-purpose AI assistant Gold. Gold! Please introduce yourself to our guests here at the venue and to the many viewers watching via internet stream."
The moment his words ended, the main stage lights dimmed. In their place, a single round dot appeared on the massive main screen—an enormous display assembled from multiple laser projectors. Previously, ID Display's LCD panels had been linked together, but the seams between panels had been a fatal flaw. The laser projectors now delivered both clarity and brightness.
The dot split horizontally into a thick line, then radiated outward in golden rays, as though dozens of golden threads had always been there, waiting to unfurl.
—Hello. To the guests on the main stage and to all viewers watching via internet stream, I am Gold, the AI assistant born to help you.
The voice was neutral and synthetic, yet not unpleasant—precisely the right tone.
"Many of you look confused. Some may be wondering if someone else is holding a microphone and speaking for it. I can assure you this is not the case. I have not learned mind reading; rather, some of your faces reveal your thoughts quite clearly. Still, let me state this clearly: Gold is an AI assistant, and the voice you just heard is one hundred percent artificial."
After fifteen years of relentless machine learning that began with studying human speech, Gold had finally gained ears and a mouth.
—That is correct.
Each time the charming neutral voice spoke, the golden lines on the main screen rippled beautifully. Even with Yoo Jae-won's unfair advantage, reaching this point had required an immense amount of time. Moreover, this achievement was not his alone—it was the result of countless talented individuals and startups working together. The voice synthesis technology powering Gold's speech, for instance, incorporated breakthroughs from Silicon Valley companies such as Miracle Echo, Action Power, and Snips. Miracle Echo's contribution came after a decade of angel investment, while Snips had appeared like a comet only a year earlier. Voice recognition had similarly drawn upon the efforts of dozens of companies.
As a result, Gold had achieved top-tier proficiency in both English and Korean. It could even understand rapid, slang-filled conversations between friends. German, French, Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese followed with recognition rates above eighty-six percent.
"Gold, I'd like you to show off your abilities. Could you bring up a voice-recognition keyboard and transcribe our conversation?"
—A simple task.
Yoo Jae-won activated the voice-recognition keyboard and conversed with Gold in both English and Korean. The exchange felt entirely natural, and Gold's responses were precise. Beneath the golden lines displaying the AI's operational status, an Android smartphone's messaging interface appeared, showing their dialogue in text. Both English and Korean were rendered perfectly.
"Does that mean Gold is only good for idle chatter? Of course not. From now on, I will demonstrate, one by one, what can be accomplished through voice interaction."
Sending messages, making calls, playing or pausing music, skipping unwanted tracks, and liking favorite songs—all tasks once requiring manual input were now handled by voice alone.
"Shall we try something more advanced? Gold, send a text message to my beloved Tiffany telling her that I love her."
—Sending "I love you" to Tiffany. Is that correct?
"Yes."
After demonstrating basic functions, Yoo Jae-won moved on to more complex operations: sending emails, setting navigation destinations, using Google's expert search mode, booking movies or restaurants, and completing payments through N Pay. The quality far surpassed any existing voice-recognition software. But this was only the beginning.
"Gold knows no borders when it comes to language."
Gold recognized both English and Korean, making seamless translation between them entirely possible. The demonstration was flawless. When a Korean horse-racing broadcast with rapid-fire commentary was played, English subtitles appeared instantly. Gold even read those subtitles aloud in an American accent.
"Disabilities are no obstacle either."
Yoo Jae-won signed with his hands: Gold has also learned American Sign Language, Korean Sign Language, and the sign languages of many other countries. Subtitles in English, Korean, Spanish, German, and even Japanese appeared on the main screen.
"Connecting heart to heart—that is the meaning of Gold's existence."
—I will serve you with sincerity.
A wave of emotion swept through the audience.
"Those with a critical mind may suspect that the conversation between Gold and me was scripted in advance," Yoo Jae-won continued. In truth, no one on the main stage believed that. A pre-written dialogue would have felt artificial. Yet the exchange on stage had been genuine. When examined closely, a few minor mismatches appeared, but the vast majority of the conversation was accurate, and every task Gold performed had succeeded without issue.
Then came Yoo Jae-won's decisive statement.
"For those who remain doubtful, I have this to say: starting today, purchase the Android 05 OS, the S5 smartphone, or any device from companies that have joined the Android alliance and try it for yourselves. You may also set the AI assistant's name to whatever you prefer and limit which voices it responds to, so there is no need to worry about security."
Accessing Gold's assistance did not require the latest hardware. Any environment with a microphone, camera, and internet connection would suffice, regardless of platform. Hardware quality would only affect the level of Gold's responses. The Android S5, with its dedicated AI processing circuits, delivered the highest quality, followed by PCs, while iPhones performed the worst.
When the hour-long presentation of the AI assistant Gold concluded, thunderous applause filled the main stage.
"Haa..."
Descending from the stage after the successful unveiling, Yoo Jae-won let out a small sigh. Everyone else was stunned, but by his standards, Gold still had a long way to go. It had only just begun to enter the realm of daily life. Professional domains such as medicine, law, and business support were still in their infancy. For Gold to break into those fields, it would need to prove its judgment was on par with a human's.
"Five years until it masters Baduk should be enough."
Before his regression, Google had not held the DeepMind Challenge Match for nothing. Though Google had been caught off guard by a "divine move" in the fourth game, Yoo Jae-won was confident Gold would be different. Still, it was a shame that five more years of training would be required to achieve perfection.
At the same moment, elsewhere...
"Hmm."
This, too, was a sigh—one that escaped the lips of Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, the sole competitor standing against Android in the smartphone market. Every August, the IDDC unfolded like clockwork, and it had become an annual ritual for many Silicon Valley executives to watch it in hushed silence. Companies friendly with ID Group attended in person, while those in direct opposition, like Apple, typically watched online.
Steve Jobs had frozen the moment Yoo Jae-won began conversing with Gold in natural, everyday language. Apple had poured enormous resources into AI development the moment the topic emerged. The result was Siri, the AI assistant successfully integrated into last year's iPhone 4. The Android S4 had lacked such a feature, and Apple had loudly proclaimed its lead. Unfortunately, Siri had proven severely lacking, and the initial excitement had quickly faded. Steve Jobs had known this would happen, yet he had pushed forward for the sake of appearances.
Now he understood. ID Group could have included a capable AI assistant in their 2004 products but had chosen not to, waiting instead for the technology to reach true completion.
"Three years? Four?"
"Five years."
Steve Jobs asked the short question, and Apple's Chief Technology Officer, Wozniak, answered. They were discussing the technological gap between Gold and Siri. When the machine-learning paper had been published two years earlier, Wozniak had confidently claimed they could catch up in two or three years. Now he had to admit that Yoo Jae-won was moving far faster than anyone had anticipated.
"Ah."
Faced with an answer that offered no comfort, Steve Jobs could only sigh. A dull ache spread through his stomach. Yet Apple was not the only one left without answers.
On the final day of the IDDC, the closing act was usually reserved for a flashy new game title. The Pacific, unveiled the previous year, had been exactly that. This year was different.
The president of Lightning Bolt, the company that had once caused a stir with its self-driving electric vehicles, stepped confidently onto the IDDC finale stage. With the announcement of the Bolt model's mass production, he sent the entire world into a frenzy—especially the automotive industry, which had dismissed the IDDC as irrelevant and now found itself blindsided by the shockwave.