Finding a good developer is not that easy. We spoke to quite a few people and companies for EVE. In the end, however, we found what we were looking for via Twitter. In a video post, Robin-Manuel Thiel was seen receiving a handshake from a self-developed robot. After writing to him briefly, it quickly became clear that he was not only a suitable developer, but also enjoyed implementing meaningful social projects. Right after the first meeting, it was clear: “It’s a match”! Ok, to be honest, we helped a little and put out pizza bait in the meeting room. That should make it easier to get her. Robin has since brought two more developers on board. One thing is certain: without them, EVE would still just be a good idea. Reason enough to ask.
Elevator pitch about you. 3, 2, 1 go:
Cloud architect by day and developer by night. Creating something through programming that can make a lasting difference and change the lives of others is what drives me. I fall in love a little too quickly with anything that has a plug or can be controlled via an app. No, I’m not fixing your printer!
Do developers really sit in the basement all day?
Nonsense! I only need my laptop to work and that’s how EVE actually came about in so many places: At home, on the train, in a hotel room and even on an airplane. I also like programming outside, but as EVE is a winter child, it was unfortunately still too cold.
Why are you taking part in EVE?
I’ve been involved in social projects for as long as I’ve been able to code. I think that often opens your eyes. Especially if you’re otherwise more in the enterprise environment. I also find the project technologically exciting. Regular programming also helps me to stay up to date myself.
What was your first thought when you heard the idea of EVE?
Good idea! Why the hell doesn’t it exist yet?
How difficult is it to turn such an idea into source code?
That is of course incredibly different. It’s like asking how difficult it is to build a house. There are parts that are easy to do. Either because you’ve done them yourself 100 times or because there are ready-made building blocks on the Internet that you can use. But then there are always the components that give you sleepless nights.
What were the particular difficulties?
We use very young and new technologies, especially in EVE’s machine learning. These were sometimes really poorly documented or still had bugs. Nevertheless, we have been able to correct some of these weaknesses thanks to direct feedback. So anyone who wants to build something similar will have an easier time thanks to us! Real pioneering work, so to speak!
And what was super easy?
We once had a bug where EVE only lost the connection after a long recording of over 10 minutes. Recreating a bug like that can be super annoying if you have to talk to her all the time. So we simply started playing audio books. That saved us a lot of work!
How does EVE’s AI work?
You can imagine it like this: We throw the sounds recorded via the microphone into a large pot and stir until something comes out that we have seen before and recognize. Technically, we compare the wave form of the audio files with hundreds of thousands from the database. The result that comes closest to the broth in the pot is then output as text. If the user has uploaded their own dictionary, we also take this into account in the output and add spice. This often results in several sentences. Our service then chooses the most likely one. Manual corrections will also play a role in the future. So lots of black magic!
What else can we expect from EVE in the future?
HoloLens and smart glasses in general is a good keyword! How cool would it be if you could have subtitles projected directly onto the lens in everyday life? In the medium term, however, there will probably be desktop apps that make it even easier for speakers to project subtitles onto the projector. And EVE will soon be translating live!
What software has yet to be invented?
Read and digitize thought streams! Then we could program EVE without typing or sitting in front of a computer!
Your programming song?
When I’m programming, nobody is allowed to speak, so I like to listen to film music. The Hans Zimmer soundtrack from “Inception” is the one I listen to most often. At least that’s what Spotify says.
Do you want to say hello to your mom?
Hi mom! Look, I’m on the Internet. You didn’t delete it by mistake!
Does EVE have hidden Easter eggs?
Why don’t you say “Eve, start the self-destruct”. And then run!
Editor’s note: The interview took place under the influence of pizza.