Car makers can use AI to detect drivers mood

Albeit helpful, the software does have a creepy touch to it

Affectiva, a MIT MediaLab startup launched an Artificial Intelligence software that uses facial and voice tracking features to understand drivers emotions, energy and distraction levels.

The company, that comes out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology research lab, says that the system will prevent accidents to occur due to a driver's state of mind.



“Affectiva Automotive AI unobtrusively measures, in real time, complex and nuanced emotional and cognitive states from face and voice,” according to the website.

The system measures facial expressions such as anger, joy, surprise, and violence when a person is behind the wheel. It identifies gender and measures the yawns and level of distraction.

The software goes to the extent of counting the number of times a person blinks and whether they yawn with an open mouth.

Albeit helpful, the software does add a creepy touch.



According to Affectiva's CEO, the company's database comprises of 6 million faces from 87 counties around the world.

“A virtual assistant guides the driver to take a deep breath, the driver’s preferred soothing playlist comes on, [and] the GPS suggests a stop along the way.”

Currently, Affectiva is working with BMW, Renault, Porsche, Daimler, Intel to take the software a step further.

 


This article originally appeared on Mashable.