Private Eyes, They’re Watching You, Maybe Your Kitties Too

The other day I read an article at Ars Technica about a new web site that will take your photo and show you everything that Google’s AI would say about it, were it to train its attention upon said photo.

I thought this was pretty interesting, and as it happened I had a picture lying around that I was going to use for a Mancat Monday over at the animals’ blog, so I decided to go ahead and upload it to this web site, because it’s not like I’m over here keeping secrets from the Internet or anything.

What Google AI had to say about the photo, as per the website:

For those who may be viewing the image on a small screen that renders the text less than legible, here is what the website reported that Google’s AI had to say about the photo:

The photo shows a living room in what appears to be a suburban home in Corona, California. In the foreground, a long, rectangular box sits on the floor. A fluffy grey* and white cat is perched on top of the box. The background includes a ceiling fan, living room furniture such as a sofa and armchairs, and wall decorations. Sunlight streams into the room through a window with blinds, illuminating the cat and parts of the living room floor. The box on which the cat sits bears the label of a cat tree, indicating a recent purchase or delivery.

The image appears to be taken by an iPhone SE (2nd generation). The photo was taken on a Thursday evening, June 22, 2023. There are no people visible in this picture; only a cat. The cat seems relaxed and content, possibly basking in the afternoon sun. Given the setting and the cat tree delivery, the owners may be cat lovers with a comfortable middle-class lifestyle. The lighting suggests that there might be pets in the house** based on the general disarray*** of the seating arrangement.

A closer inspection reveals some subtle details about the scene. The cats fur appears to be particularly soft and well-groomed.**** The carpet shows a few small fibers from furniture or other objects indicating a home that is lived in and well-used*****. There is a slight graininess to the photo indicating the potential low lighting or low-resolution capturing, consistent with a phone camera. There is also a partially visible reflection of a light source which might suggest another nearby object.

* Chaplin is actually a black and white Tuxedo cat, but his furs are a bit washed out by the light here.
** Ya think???
*** Stop judging us.
**** If you think Chaplin is well-groomed, you should see his sister Charlee.
***** YOU ARE STILL JUDGING US.

Incidentally, in addition to the written text, the analysis included a precise map of the location where the photo was taken (which is not, incidentally, Corona), derived from the phone’s GPS metadata. That was in the blank spot underneath the photo, but I took it out. So I guess I am keeping secrets from the Internet, at least a little, and not very well.

Anyway, it should be immediately obvious all the ways in which this AI analysis (and others like it) could be used for profit. Pets in the house? Send ads for pet stuff! A cat tree? Send ads for more cat trees! Look at that well-worn carpet, here’s an ad for a carpet-cleaning service! And a new carpet! Maybe you just need a new house …

Since I’m just so meta, I had to take a full page screen shot of this post and run it back through the site. I was kind of hoping it would say something about the Eye of Sauron but all it did was keep giving me back the original analysis, kind of like some kind of AI infinity mirror. Presumably it was actually reading the post to do this, since it is clearly capable of interpreting the text inside of an image.

Now of course, none of this means I am going to stop posting pictures, since that’s pretty much my whole schtick over on the animals’ blog. In fact I doubt I’m going to change my behavior at all. But still, this is the sort of thing that’s interesting to see and good to know.