Hello, Jarvis? China’s new AI app stirs dreams of Tony Stark’s assistant becoming reality

Fintech giant Ant Group entered Jarvis-like territory when it launched AI app Zhixiaobao, a new smart assistant designed for everyday use.

Ben Jiangin Beijing
Speculation on how Jarvis, the fictional AI assistant of Tony Stark, can be realised in China shows the lofty ambition of mainland developers. Photo: Shutterstock
The latest artificial intelligence (AI) app announced in China appears to be raising the hopes of consumers for a future in which a version of Jarvis, the smart virtual assistant of Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, becomes commonplace in the world’s second-largest economy.
The fictional Jarvis – an acronym that stands for “Just a Rather Very Intelligent System” – is a sophisticated AI assistant that made its debut in the 2008 film Iron Man, in which it manages and operates the internal systems of Stark’s laboratory, home and superhero armours.
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