The much-anticipated day for the public debut of both quantum technology and Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) had finally come. A mix of apprehension and excitement filled the air, yet the team felt confident, knowing they were prepared to present the culmination of their hard work.
They had rigorously tested, refined, modified, and updated every aspect of their creations until the very last moment, and the time to reveal these developments to the world was at hand.
Existing artificial intelligence technologies are known to require substantial power resources for operation, which limits their capabilities. This power requirement dictates the reliance on cloud services, hindering local access. However, the advent of AGI, paired with advancements in quantum technology, has negated the need for such limitations.
Even the most sophisticated open-source AI models can now be operated locally, utilizing a new conversion tool developed by Qualtoquanm Tech. This innovative solution will be showcased to the world at the unveiling.
The process of converting existing models to this new format is straightforward, involving just a few clicks, and will be seamlessly integrated into the newly presented AGI.
Right now, Yasushi was in his personal office, reviewing several details in preparation for the unveiling scheduled to occur in three hours. He felt a sense of unease. Although he wouldn't be speaking during the presentation, he would be demonstrating all the products live in front of a global audience.
Even at this moment, he was actively testing the various items. Yasushi had on one of the smart glasses, utilizing them as much as possible. Should he identify any flaw or issue, he would report it immediately so that it could be addressed or the problematic feature disabled before the official release.
"Uh... uh... testing, one, two, three," he muttered quietly to himself, before standing up from his desk.
Nearby, a hoverboard was situated, which he promptly stepped onto while still examining the documents in his hands. He moved in circles around his office, continuously evaluating the functionality of the glasses, microphones, and the hoverboard all at the same time. He referred to this as multitasking and considered it an efficient method, particularly during crucial times such as this.
Jamie finally got to Yasushi's office, but Yasushi was so caught up in his own world he didn't even see Jamie come in. Jamie was pretty entertained by how focused Yasushi was. He just stood there, watching his friend zoom around in circles on his hoverboard, muttering to himself, and using those quantum glasses to look up stuff in some kind of database. It was quite the sight to see.
"Look, Yasushi, I think we are good for the day. You can chill out until the event starts. It's not going to take very long, maybe half an hour at the most, you know?" Jamie said, bringing Yasushi back to reality.
Yasushi stopped the hoverboard and let out a big sigh. "Yeah, I know, I'm just being a worrywart. Is everything else set on your end?" he asked.
Jamie put his thumb up in the air. "More ready than we could ever be. We went over everything four times last night. We're good. We even had Merlin double-check for any meddling and he found nothing, so we are all good. Anyway, I got something to tell you."
"Something to tell me?" Yasushi asked, clearly puzzled and a little bit intrigued about what Jamie was about to say. His brow was furrowed slightly as he looked at Jamie, waiting for him to explain.
Jamie grinned, a wide, knowing smile spreading across his face. "Yeah, so it turns out that there has been a secret team, a real hush-hush operation going over the storage rings for some time now. This means that we get to use a very early version, a prototype if you will, today. This is extra, on top of the other stuff we agreed on. We've added the storage ring as well."
Jamie then reached into his pocket and pulled out the item, handing it over to Yasushi. "There are a few things you need to know, but the details are all inside. It's nothing crazy, just have a look," he said. Yasushi, now with the storage ring on his finger, took the small piece of paper out of the ring.
The letter was short and sweet. It just said not to put anything larger or heavier than a desk in there for now, since it's still being worked on. Also, time does not stop when stuff is inside. If you put warm coffee in the ring, you'll get cold coffee if you take it out after a few hours. It was like a quick heads-up about the limitations of this new tech.
"Alright, I'll let you get back to it then," Jamie said, giving Yasushi a friendly pat on the shoulder before turning around and walking out of the office. He left Yasushi alone to mess with the new tech.
As soon as Jamie was gone, Yasushi got straight to work. He started grabbing all sorts of different items and began putting them into the quantum storage rings. He started testing the limits, trying objects that were about the same size as the table he had there, but lighter in weight.
After that, he went the other way, grabbing things that were smaller but heavier. He was quickly able to tell when an item was a no-go. The ring would reject it, which was good, so he wouldn't have to worry about putting something in there on accident and then being stuck.
Yasushi kept on playing around with the ring and other things he could find, completely lost in what he was doing. He was so busy testing the limits that he barely noticed the time. It wasn't long before the moment he was preparing for was upon him. The big event, the unveiling of the quantum tech and the agi to the world, was about to start and it was all on him.
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A little bit after that, Yasushi had changed into the right clothes for the event. He had the quantum glasses on his face, and the quantum goggles were hanging off his belt on his hip. He also had his microphone all set up and he was wearing the storage ring. He was fully geared up and ready to go.
The only things he didn't have were the quantum tech items that were going to be given to the police and fire department. The one for the fire department was pretty damn heavy, it was like a small backpack. The one for the police was just glasses, but it worked with a different code and had a completely different database, so they saw it as a different thing altogether.
"You ready?" Kohana, his mother, asked, her voice filled with a mix of excitement and a touch of concern. His little sister, Himari, was standing right next to her, jumping up and down, super thrilled to see Yasushi in action.
"Big Brother, are you ready!?" Himari copied her mother, but with a lot more energy and a louder tone. She was clearly bouncing off the walls with excitement for him.
Yuji, his dad, came over and gave him a pat on the shoulder, asking the same question. Yasushi let out a small sigh, a mix of nerves and anticipation, and nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm ready. I just need to wait for the person who's speaking to give me the signal, and I can start using the new tech," he answered, trying to sound calm and collected.
They all gave him a nod and wished him good luck one last time, showing their support. Yasushi stood there, a bit tense but also excited, waiting for his turn to go out. He was with the others who were also part of the demonstration. The whole unveiling was taking place on the grounds of Buckingham Palace, which was a pretty big deal.
The main announcements were going to be handled by other lead scientists, along with his parents, Jingliu's parents, Xinyi's parents, and a few others. Jingliu and Xinyi weren't going to be on stage, they were staying out of the spotlight for this one. But Yasushi, because he'd been working on this stuff for longer and had done a lot of the testing, was going to be up there with the big shots.
After another short pause, some music started playing, building up the atmosphere. Then, the people who were doing the announcing started talking, addressing the crowd that was there in person and also the people watching all over the world through the live stream.
The rest of the group that was meant to go out with him came over with his parents, a mix of professionals and supportive family.
As he stood there, his nervousness started to fade away, replaced by a sense of determination. He put on his "game face," as he liked to call it, and got ready to face the event and the people. He was ready to show them what they had been working on for so long.
Finally, they all started walking out onto the stage. Yasushi was bringing up the rear, being the youngest person in the group. Even Jamie was there, but he was further up in the line, closer to the front.
They walked out onto the grounds of the palace, where they were met with a huge crowd of people watching them from behind the fences. Above them, there was a gigantic TV screen that showed everything that was happening on stage. This made it easier for the people outside to see what was going on, even if they were far away.
One by one, each scientist and researcher began to speak, using the brand new quantum microphones they had created. The crowd on the streets were genuinely taken aback by how clear they could hear them. It wasn't like normal microphones, where the sound can be a little fuzzy or echoey.
This felt like the speakers were talking directly to them, face to face, which felt strange but incredibly exciting at the same time.
Their talk went on for at least ten minutes, as they explained what the event was about and who was going to show off all the new technology. When Yasushi heard his name being called, he tensed up a little bit, but he kept a straight, serious face, ready for his part in the demonstration. He knew he had a job to do.
"Alright, now it's time for us to put everything to the test. Yasushi, can you please start by demonstrating the quantum glasses designed for the police department?" a woman said, and Yasushi quickly nodded in agreement, ready to get to work.
He took off his own glasses and tucked them away in his breast pocket. He then walked over to the table where the police glasses were laid out. He picked them up and put them on, and with a quick tap on the side, he activated them.
These glasses had been through a lot of changes, with many upgrades and revisions, so Yasushi didn't need to speak out loud to use any of their functions. It was all controlled through subtle gestures and eye movements. The woman explained this to the crowd, which really impressed them. It was clear how advanced the technology was.
"Okay...since these are used by the police, let's pick someone at random. Over there," she said, pointing to a young guy in his mid-twenties who suddenly looked surprised and maybe a little bit nervous. "Yasushi, can you pull up his known information?"
Yasushi silently nodded and turned his head towards the guy. The information that Yasushi was seeing through the glasses popped up on the giant TV screen above them. This way, everyone in the crowd and watching around the world could see exactly what Yasushi was seeing through the glasses, a real-time demonstration of the advanced technology.
The young man's face went white as a sheet when he saw all his information popping up on the screen. It showed his full name, how tall he was, how much he weighed, his eye color, hair color, and other physical details. It also displayed a record of any past arrests, any time he'd had a run-in with the law, and other minor things that weren't actually illegal, but were still kind of questionable.
The screen also showed past and current addresses, although those were blocked out for the TV audience. There was also a section that listed people he knew, like friends, acquaintances, coworkers, and others, all put into different groups. It was a lot of personal information for the world to see.
After taking all of this in, the young man suddenly shouted out, "Why the hell does it say I peed the bed!?" He was clearly embarrassed and caught off guard by what he was seeing.
"That information is from data gathered from your old Facebook post. You wrote that yourself and posted it online, sir," the female researcher replied calmly, which made the young man bury his face in his hands in shame.
The woman continued, "There is a lot more relevant data that is available to those who work in the police. They can access all of this information to help them arrest people successfully. This is just a demo, so not all the information is going to be shown publicly."
After they showed off the police glasses for a few more minutes, they moved on to the goggles designed for the fire department. Yasushi also picked up the Quaffer, which was the device they used to shoot out those bubbles that could instantly put out fires. He was ready to demonstrate its power.
In the distance, after being prompted by a fellow researcher on the microphone, other researchers started some controlled fires. It was all part of the planned demonstration.
On the big TV screen, the audience saw a version of what Yasushi was seeing in his goggles, but with extra information. It showed what kind of fire it was, how far away it was, the exact amount of foam needed to put it out, and the ideal distance Yasushi should move to, to make the most of the foam and save energy. It was all calculated by the advanced tech.
After the goggles did their calculations, Yasushi took two steps forward and pressed the right buttons. He pulled back a lever and then pulled the trigger. The Quamble, the bubble of fire-extinguishing foam, shot forward at a good speed, ready to put out the fire.
As soon as the bubble and the fire touched, there was a small explosion, and the flames were put out immediately. The crowd around them let out a series of gasps and cheers, impressed by the demonstration, but Yasushi wasn't done yet.
There were still two more fires burning, so he turned his attention to them with the help of his goggles. He quickly took care of the flames, putting them out just as fast as the first one.
Once he was finished, he let out a small sigh, hearing the excited cheers in the distance. He knew he was just doing his job, but Yasushi understood why the crowd was so hyped. He knew that this technology would save countless lives in the future. It was a great step forward for fire safety.
Suddenly, a man in the crowd shouted out, "What about corners?! What happens if the fire isn't in a straight line?!" He seemed concerned about the practical use of the tech in real-world scenarios.
The woman on the microphone responded, "We've definitely taken that into account. With the help of the goggles, once the fire has been locked on, the Quaffer will move on its own to find the fire, even if there are corners and other obstacles in the way. It's designed to adapt to different situations." She was quick to reassure the crowd of the tech's capabilities.
Of course, they needed to show off how versatile the technology was, so they set up a more complex demonstration. Some of the other scientists created controlled fires around two corners and one behind a tree. Yasushi turned towards that direction and aimed his Quaffer, ready for the challenge. He used his quantum goggles to calculate the different angles and distances before firing.
Three different Quambles shot out of the Quaffer, each one heading in a different direction. The one that was going for the fire behind the tree went the fastest. The crowd was confused when they saw it shoot past the tree, but then it suddenly stopped mid-air and flew backwards, putting out the flames and surprising them all. It showed how intelligent the tech was.
The other two Quambles broke off to the left and right, going around the corners and putting out the fires there as well. The crowd was clearly impressed by the technology's ability to adapt and maneuver, it wasn't just good in straight lines.
Once these demonstrations were done, the only pieces of tech left to showcase were the storage ring, the hoverboard, and the earmuffs. Though, they all understood trying to demonstrate the earmuffs on a large stage was not going to be easy.
"Alright, next up in our showcase is… storage rings!" the woman announced, which seemed to catch a lot of people off guard. "These rings can store all sorts of different items, of different sizes. However, each tier of ring has a certain limit. Yasushi, could you show them the prototype we just finished up!"
Yasushi stepped forward, holding out his right hand to show off the ring. He then took off the goggles he was wearing and held them over the ring. There was a quick flash of light, and the goggles suddenly disappeared. A small, square-shaped hologram then appeared above the ring, showing a picture of the goggles inside it. It was like looking into a tiny window into the ring's storage space.
"In this tier of the storage ring, you can store around fifty large items, around two hundred medium-sized items, and about five hundred small items," the woman explained. "If you put food in them, it will still rot, so for now, you can't store food items. In the future, we're planning on being able to freeze time within the rings for food and other items. So, if you put warm coffee inside and take it out after a few hours, it'll still be warm. But for now, it'll be cold if you put it in and take it out a while later," she explained, giving the crowd an idea of the tech's future potential.
With this demonstration, the crowd went absolutely wild. They were seeing something so futuristic, it was like something out of a movie! The idea that they could finally store things inside a small device, without having to lug them around, was mind-blowing. To the average person, this was a revolutionary leap forward.
Students could finally store their heavy bags in it! They could carry their projects, sports equipment, and other items, even things they weren't supposed to be carrying, with ease! The possibilities seemed endless. People in many different fields of work were also buzzing with excitement. They could easily store their work clothes and tools in the rings, making it so much easier to travel without being weighed down.
The woman then began to explain the different tiers of the storage rings. There were five in total. The ring they had just seen, the lowest tier, would cost fifty dollars. The next tier would be priced at two hundred dollars, then five hundred, then one thousand, and finally, the highest tier would cost five thousand dollars.
Everyone was surprised at the way the prices increased so sharply. However, she reassured them that once the technology became more developed and the costs of production decreased, the prices would fall, making them much more affordable for everyone. She tried to give them hope that it wouldn't always be so expensive.
"Now, some of you might be wondering why the five-thousand-dollar price tag on the highest tier, right? Well, I'll explain. Once these tiers of storage rings are released, they will have the features I talked about earlier. They will be able to stop time inside, so you can store food and other items without them going bad. The weight limit and the number of items you can store will also increase a lot. We are aiming for the last tier to be able to carry at least five billion items!" she announced, which shocked everyone in the crowd. It was a massive upgrade.
"There are other features we haven't shown off yet because they're still in development, but there will be a lot of quality-of-life improvements. This means that navigating through the different items will be super easy, even for people who aren't really good with technology!" she added, which made the crowd cheer and applaud even more. They could see how user-friendly and amazing the tech would be in the future.
She chuckled, slightly amused by their excitement, and said, "Alright, now for our second to last item… they're earmuffs. But… better. Now, they might seem basic and not so exciting, so we saved the best demonstration for the very last. We'll give you a quick demo for these now." She hinted that these earmuffs were much more than they appeared to be.
Yasushi walked over to the earmuffs and put them on. Before anyone could really figure out what was going to happen, someone walked over to Yasushi — it was his mother, Kohana. He got a little nervous as he stared at her, not sure what she was planning. Kohana stood next to Yasushi and pointed at another product that wasn't actually part of the official testing for the day.
It was the first version of the quantum microphone, and it looked like a loudspeaker. She turned the volume up to the max and shouted into it, forcing everyone to cover their ears, shocked by the sudden loudness. The noise was deafening.
After a few seconds, the woman on the main microphone said, "As you can see — that was one of our very first prototypes for the quantum microphone I'm currently using. It might not look too great, but the volume is still the same. Anyway…" She gave a nod to Yasushi to take off the earmuffs.
Yasushi took off the earmuffs, activated his own microphone, and said, "I can still hear you all just fine... and yeah, those earmuffs totally protected me, no ringing or anything like that." He was clearly unaffected by the loud sound, showing how well the earmuffs worked.
Yasushi put the earmuffs back down on the table. His mother gave him a quick wink before walking away, while his father, Jamie, and the others tried their best to hold in their laughter. They all thought it was pretty funny.
He definitely hadn't expected his own mother to do something like that, even if they did work at the same company together. However, he couldn't focus on it for too long because the final product was about to be revealed. He had to keep his head in the game.
"Next, and finally, the last product of the day!" the woman exclaimed, her voice full of excitement. She gave a nod to Yasushi, and he nodded back, ready for his final demonstration.
He held out his hand, and an item came out of the storage ring. An object that looked just like a skateboard appeared, which confused a lot of people in the crowd, as well as those watching on their TVs or other streaming services from home. They were all a bit puzzled.
"This right here...is a hoverboard! But unlike those fake hoverboards you saw years ago, this one is the real thing! Yasushi, take it away!!" the woman shouted, and her excitement got the crowd going too. They all wanted to see what this thing could do.
Yasushi grinned, a real smile of excitement showing on his face. He put the hoverboard down and stepped onto it. He leaned forward slightly, and the board began to float in the air. He leaned a little more, and the board started moving forward, picking up speed. He had been using this thing for a long time now, so he had excellent control over it.
Yasushi didn't waste any time and started gliding around the yard. He floated a bit before going higher and higher. Most people had thought that this hoverboard would probably be a dud, but when they saw him float higher and higher, reaching the height of the giant TV above them, they were completely blown away. They were not expecting that at all.
He then started zipping around in the air, going super fast before diving down towards the ground. When he got closer to the ground, he stopped and started floating smoothly towards the crowd and the gate. He followed along the fence for a bit, then decided to throw in a kickflip, which made the crowd go absolutely crazy.
Yasushi had been practicing with the hoverboard a lot, so he decided to learn how to do a kickflip. It wasn't that hard on a normal skateboard, but on a hoverboard, it took a little bit of time and effort to get it right.
Eventually, Yasushi's demonstration came to an end. He glided back to the front of the stage and stepped off the hoverboard. After a few seconds of total silence, the crowd erupted into a loud roar of cheers and applause. They were clearly blown away by what they had just seen.
"Seems like they enjoyed the demonstration," he said, a little out of breath, as the cheering kept going.
"Indeed. Well done, Yasushi. We couldn't have picked a better person to show this to the world. Now then…leave the rest to us. We'll explain all the other technical stuff, pricing, and the launch date for these products. You go back and get some rest," replied the woman, smiling at him.
Yasushi nodded his head, relieved that his part was over. He handed the items he had used for the demonstration to her and then walked back onto the stage and out of the spotlight. He had done his job and was ready to relax.
"Good job," Jingliu said, meeting him in the hallway where they had been before the show.
Yasushi let out a tired sigh and scratched the back of his head. "Thanks, it felt a little suffocating being watched by so many people. I just wanna eat..." he mumbled, making Jingliu chuckle. It was clear that he was exhausted from the pressure and attention.
Xinyi suddenly came up behind him and gave him a big hug. "Then it's time for some food! We actually knew you'd be super tired after all that, so we went out to buy some food for you earlier. We managed to catch the last eight minutes of your demonstrations, though," she said, her voice full of warmth and affection.
Yasushi let out a small sigh. He was just too exhausted to try and get out of Xinyi's grip, so he just decided to go along with it. He was happy that his friends had been thoughtful enough to get him food beforehand.
His job was finally done, and now all they had to do was wait and see how well all the new tech would do in the future. He had played his part, and the rest was out of his hands now. He was looking forward to seeing what the future held.