Tech giant patents 'weird' technology

Google's mad science X division is juggling with the idea of smart teddy bears in one of its strangest patents yet.

According to the patent filed by the tech giant, "the anthropomorphic device may aim its gaze at the source of the social cue," then "interpret the command (via its servers) and map it to a media control device," according to the document. From there, it could "express curiosity, (it) may tilt its head, furrow its brow, and/or scratch its head with an arm." It added that the device should be "cute" so that "young children may find (it) attractive."

In addition to interacting with kids, the toys could also be used to control media devices like TVs, DVD players and even smart home devices like thermostats.

All that may have seemed like a good idea back when the patent was filed in 2012 (it was granted last Thursday), but a lot has changed since then, especially as far as privacy is concerned.

Privacy activists, Big Brother Watch told the BBC that "the privacy concerns are clear when devices have the capacity to record conversations and log activity... (especially) when those devices are aimed at children." The lawyer who spotted the patent put it more expressively, saying the "creepy" idea belonged "in a horror film."

Looking at it from another angle, Google could 'de-creep' such a device by limiting its servers' access to just voice commands, which it records through "OK Google" anyway.

Toys like "Hello Barbie" that interact with kids are not especially new, nor are similar voice-activated devices, like Amazon's Echo speaker, already in existence as well.

Of course, all that might not actually mean anything, since Google told the BBC, "some of those ideas later mature into real products or services, some don't. Prospective product announcements should not necessarily be inferred from our patent applications."