Meet "Ask for Me": Google's AI Concierge for Local Services

Google's unleashing AI on the world of nail salons and auto shops! 💅🚗 Forget endless phone calls and frantic searching – Google's new "Ask for Me" tool is stepping in to do the dirty work for you. Imagine this: you're craving a mani-pedi or your car's making a weird noise.

Instead of dialing a dozen numbers, you simply tap "Ask for Me" in Google Search, answer a few quick questions about what you need, and boom! Google's AI takes over, calling businesses to get the scoop on pricing and availability. Think of it as your personal AI assistant for local errands.

This isn't Google's first foray into AI phone calls – remember Duplex? "Ask for Me" is built on the same tech, but with a twist. Google's making sure businesses know they're talking to a bot, not a human, right from the start. Transparency is key here. And if businesses don't want to chat with AI, they can easily opt out. Google's even putting limits on call frequency to avoid overwhelming anyone.But here's the real question: how will this actually go?

Just like with Duplex, there's bound to be some awkwardness when the AI receptionist calls up the local nail salon. Will the salon owner be charmed or confused? Will mechanics hang up on a robot? It's going to be fascinating (and probably hilarious) to see how this plays out in the real world. What do you think? Is this the future of local search, or a recipe for robotic mayhem? Let's discuss!