Meta 的 Charm 裝置承載執行長祖克柏的 AI 雄心

作者：阿迪蒂亞・索尼By Aditya Soni

加州門洛帕克，9 月 23 日（路透）——馬克・祖克柏週三在 Meta 年度活動中多次調侃蘋果，最後卻借用史蒂夫・賈伯斯的套路，意外發表一款口袋懷錶大小的裝置，將 Meta 爆紅的 Muse AI 助理帶進現實世界。MENLO PARK, California, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Mark Zuckerberg took repeated digs at Apple during Meta's annual event on Wednesday, only to borrow a page from Steve Jobs' playbook for a surprise reveal: a pocket-watch-sized device that carries Meta's viral Muse AI agent into the real world.

這款名為 Muse Charm 的裝置，凸顯這家社群媒體巨頭更廣泛的轉向。Meta 長期以來一直尋求擺脫蘋果與 Google 作業系統，打造自己的平台。使用者可輕觸這款小裝置直接使用 Muse，繞過智慧手機上的 AI 應用程式。The device, called Muse Charm, highlights a broader shift at the social media giant that has long sought to escape Apple and Google's operating systems with a platform of its own. Users can tap the gadget to access Muse directly, bypassing AI apps on smartphones.

祖克柏曾把元宇宙——也就是啟發該公司 2021 年更名的沉浸式數位世界——視為下一個運算平台；但在先前代價高昂的押注失利後，他現在認為「個人超級智慧」是更重大、也更迫在眉睫的突破。Having once championed the metaverse — the immersive digital world that inspired the company's name change in 2021 — as the next computing platform, Zuckerberg now sees "personal superintelligence" as the bigger and more immediate breakthrough, after his previous costly wager failed.

祖克柏在公司年度 Meta Connect 大會上表示：「其實很明顯，個人超級智慧不只會率先到來，也會更龐大、更重要。」"It is actually quite clear personal superintelligence will not only come first; it will be much bigger and more important," Zuckerberg said at the company's annual Meta Connect conference.

他說：「因此，我們已把重心轉向打造最好的個人超級智慧裝置。」他並補充，Muse 很快也將在 Meta 的智慧眼鏡產品線上推出。"So we have shifted our focus to building the best devices for personal superintelligence," he said, adding that Muse would also soon be available across Meta's smart glasses lineup.

上述談話發表前，Muse 剛經歷轟動的數日；這款應用程式已吸引數百萬次下載，一些分析師稱，這可能是自 ChatGPT 於 2022 年 11 月問世並引爆 AI 熱潮以來，美國規模最大的應用程式發表。The remarks follow a blockbuster few days for Muse, which has drawn millions of downloads in what some analysts have said could be the biggest app launch in the US since ChatGPT arrived in November 2022 and kicked off the AI boom.

投資人看好 Muse 有潛力自動處理從訂機票到報稅等各類任務，帶動 Shopify 等合作夥伴股價上漲，同時拋售被視為容易受到顛覆的公司，包括線上旅遊業者 Booking，以及報稅軟體 TurboTax 的開發商 Intuit。Investors have embraced Muse's potential to automate tasks ranging from booking flights to filing taxes, lifting shares of partners such as Shopify while dumping companies seen as vulnerable to disruption, including online travel agency Booking and TurboTax software creator Intuit.

Meta 股價週四上漲逾 3%；自 9 月 8 日 Muse 推出以來，該股已累計上漲近 24%。在截至週三收盤約增加 3,240 億美元市值後，公司週四可望再增加約 560 億美元市值。Meta shares climbed more than 3% on Thursday after rising nearly 24% since the launch of Muse on September 8. The company was on track to add about $56 billion in market value, after gaining roughly $324 billion through Wednesday's close.

可能吸引 Z 世代，但大規模普及不易MAY APPEAL TO GEN Z, MASS ADOPTION DIFFICULT

分析師表示，在數位相機、掀蓋手機與 MP3 播放器正因懷舊風潮捲土重來之際，Muse Charm 可能引起年輕消費者共鳴。Muse Charm could resonate with younger consumers at a time when digital cameras, flip phones and MP3 players are enjoying nostalgic comebacks, analysts say.

約 14 至 29 歲的 Z 世代消費者，將 AI 助理視為陪伴者或腦力激盪夥伴，而不只是搜尋工具。不同於較年長、通常更習慣使用個人電腦與智慧手機應用程式的使用者，許多 Z 世代透過語音訊息、短影音與 AI 聊天機器人和科技互動。Gen Z consumers, aged about 14 to 29, treat AI assistants as companions or brainstorming partners rather than simply search tools. Many interact with technology through voice notes, short videos and AI chatbots, unlike older users who are often more comfortable with PCs and smartphone apps.

市場研究公司 Smart Analytics Global 創辦人琳達・隋表示：「Muse Charm 可能會在 Z 世代與更年輕的消費者之中獲得一些市場動能。AI、時尚與個人化的組合，可能吸引年輕使用者，尤其如果它價格親民又容易使用。」"Muse Charm could find some traction among Gen Z and younger consumers. The combination of AI, fashion and personalization could appeal to younger users, especially if it is affordable and easy to use," said Linda Sui, founder of Smart Analytics Global, a market research firm.

這款裝置配備約 2 吋（5 公分）螢幕，可用拇指操作，中央有可自訂的 Muse 角色。內建 5G 數據機讓使用者即使沒有 Wi-Fi 也能使用 Muse，不過它無法撥打電話。The device features a roughly 2-inch (5-cm) screen that can be navigated with a thumb, with a customizable Muse character at its center. A built-in 5G modem allows access to Muse even without Wi-Fi, though it cannot make calls.

IDC 主管吉特什・烏布拉尼表示：「他們正在吸引那些可能不想戴眼鏡、或可能不信任眼鏡的人。」"They are appealing to people who might not want to wear glasses or might not trust glasses," said IDC director Jitesh Ubrani.

烏布拉尼提到 1990 年代末成為文化現象的彩色虛擬寵物時說：「有些人可能還記得塔麻可吉，而這可能會讓他們想起那個東西。它們或許能在本機端執行小型語言模型。因此，你可以在這麼小的裝置上運行 AI。」"Some people might remember Tamagotchi and this might evoke that," Ubrani said, referring to colorful virtual pets that became a cultural phenomenon in the late 1990s. "They might be able to run a small language model locally. So you can run AI on such a small package."

Muse 能否維持聲勢，以及這款裝置能否擴大其吸引力，將是未來幾個月的問題。Whether Muse can sustain its momentum and the device can amplify that appeal is a question for the months ahead.

類似裝置過去成效有限。新創公司 Rabbit Inc 推出的手持式生成式 AI 裝置 Rabbit R1，配有螢幕與按鈕，2024 年初發表時聲勢浩大，最後卻因 AI 功能承諾過高、實際體驗不穩定而失敗。Similar devices have had limited success. The Rabbit R1, a handheld generative AI device from startup Rabbit Inc with a screen and a button, had a buzzy launch in early 2024 only to flop because it overpromised on AI features and delivered an unreliable experience.

隋表示：「我會謹慎看待它的大眾市場潛力。除非 Muse Charm 能提供智慧手機、手錶、耳機或智慧眼鏡無法輕易取代的獨特功能，否則它更可能停留在早期採用者覺得『有也不錯』的裝置，而不是成為主流產品。」"I would be cautious about its mass-market potential," Sui said. "Unless Muse Charm can offer unique functions that smartphones, watches, earbuds or smart glasses cannot easily replace, it is more likely to remain a nice-to-have device for early adopters than become a mainstream product."

（阿迪蒂亞・索尼加州門洛帕克報導；Sayantani Ghosh 與 Jamie Freed 編輯）(Reporting by Aditya Soni in Menlo Park, California; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh and Jamie Freed)