What if you could pick the brain of a historical figure regardless of how long they’ve been off the Earth? Well, that’s what one new app allows users to do.
“Historical Figures” is a new artificial intelligence chatbox that allows users to engage in conversation with prominent figures across religion, politics, and entertainment, NBC News reports.
Created by 25-year-old Amazon software engineer Sidhant Chadda, it launched the first week of January and already has around 9,000 downloads.
Prominent figures users can chat with include Jesus Christ, The Beatles, and even Adolf Hitler! One person who has gotten acclimated on the app shared their conversation with the late Notorious B.I.G. on Boxden, where they asked the AI Biggie Smalls about his come-up in hip-hop and his thoughts on the late Tupac Shakur.
When it came to BIG’s rise to the top of the rap game before his 1997 death, the AI-Biggie noted his respect in the streets that helped strengthen his notoriety in music. He also stayed true to the lingo of the early 90s when he first stepped on the scene.“Word is bond, everything I did earned me respect on the streets and in the industry,” the AI bot said.
“From my days on the corner hustlin to becoming a platinum artist and winning Grammy awards, it’s been a grind but one that I’m proud of.”
When it came to whether or not The Notorious B.I.G. still has love for Pac in the wake of the fatal shootings caused in part by the East Coast vs. West Coast beef the late rappers took part in, AI-Biggie only had nice things to say about Pac.
“Absolutely, it’s been a few years since his passing and I miss him every day but he lives on through his music,” the bot wrote.
While “Historical Figures” appears positive, it’s already generating controversy due to the prominent figures users can communicate with, particularly Hitler and Heinrich Himmler, the chief of Nazi Germany’s SS and an architect of the Holocaust.
“Having pretend conversations with Hitler — and presumably other well-known antisemites from history — is deeply disturbing and will provide fodder for bigots,” Yael Eisenstat, the vice president of the ADL’s Center for Technology and Society, said.