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Kodak has created a new Facebook Messenger chatbot called ‘Kodak Moments’ that tries to get users to buy physical products by digging through and resurfacing their old photos.
The AI algorithm works by searching through the mass of images a user has uploaded to Facebook and suggesting ones that may have been forgotten in hopes the user, when suddenly presented with this fond old memory (or Kodak moment… if you will), will order it as a physical print or photo product like a coffee mug.
Facebook users are given the option of either dismissing the chatbot’s suggested image, requesting other images that contain the same people as the first image, or requesting a print or product containing the selected image. All you have to do to join this ‘fun’ game that tries to sell you things is search for Kodak Moments in the Messenger app.
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Unfortunately, the chatbot—at least in its current iteration—doesn’t support any sort of filtering options, making it impossible to prevent the bot from digging up photos of old memories better left forgotten. Consider yourself warned.
Joining this Messenger chatbot is a new Kodak Moments app (Android | iOS) that goes a bit further. After being given permission, the app will search through a Facebook or Google account and camera roll to find images it thinks users may want to turn into physical products.
The goal behind the new Kodak Moments technology is (obviously) to increase the company’s print sales while reviving the idea of a ‘Kodak Moment’ and helping customers sort through their possibly massive photo albums. We’ll let you decide if the concept is fun, annoying, or maybe a bit traumatizing.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)