During the first tests with a revision unit of Beewe found the device itself to be easy to use. Just press a button to turn recording on or off. In the app, you can configure whether a double tap marks a section of the conversation, addresses the current conversation, or both, and you can set whether a long-press gesture lets you leave a voice note or chat with the AI assistant. (Bee’s companion app currently reminds you to turn on voice notes, which is what we did.)
Like many other AI products and services, such as Plaud, Granola, Breaststroke, Fireflies, Otterand much more, Bee can listen to, record and transcribe audio conversations. What’s different is that instead of offering an overview or a raw transcription, it segments the audio into sections and summarizes each part. For example, an interview can be segmented into sections such as introduction, essential product details, overview of industry trends, and anything else you may have talked about.
Each section is tinted with a different background color for easier differentiation as you scroll. You can navigate to an individual section to see the exact transcription.
It wasn’t immediately obvious how to label speakers in the app – we learned that we could tap on a segment of the conversation to confirm whether we were the speaker, but this fell short of other professional AI transcribers, where each speaker could be labeled. Additionally, Bee removes audio after transcription, making it a non-starter for use cases where you need to play audio to ensure accuracy.
That said, Bee is not necessarily intended to be a work tool. Amazon sees this as an AI that can live alongside you throughout your day. By integrating with Google services, Bee can link a recorded conversation to a task. For example, after meeting someone at a conference, it might suggest you become friends with them on LinkedIn or research their product.
You can also leave yourself voice notes, instead of writing something in your Notes app, for example.
Another section of the Bee app lets you look back on memories of days gone by, while a ‘Growth’ section will offer insights as it learns about you. You can also confirm and complete a “facts” section about yourself, which is somewhat equivalent to other AI chatbots’ ability to remember things you’ve discussed.
Amazon says it will roll out more features for Bee in the coming year.
Bee isn’t it always listening by default, which is why competing portable devices like Friend AI pendant saw backlash. Instead, you’re supposed to ask if you can record someone’s conversation (except at some public event, where recording is already scheduled).
When you are recording, a green light will illuminate, alerting others that the device is in use.
Bee’s sports band was a little shaky. The band fell twice while being carried, both times while just sitting and not moving their hands much (like in a taxi). We haven’t tested the snap pin yet, but it seems sturdier.
Overall, the design of the mobile app is well ahead of apps Amazon creates in-house, like the Alexa Mobile Experience, and it’s easy to use. But the hypothesis that we need AI specifically to record conversations to learn more about us has not yet been widely tested. Is there a world in which such devices would make sense for consumers who don’t record in professional settings, like meetings and interviews?
Additionally, if AI listening devices become widespread, there will also have to be some sort of cultural shift in terms of what is appropriate and what is not. Today, it’s somewhat looked down upon to record videos of ordinary people going about their business, even though it’s technically legal when they’re in public; Likewise, it may be considered tasteless or gauche to record audio with an AI device if you don’t ask permission first.
Of course, not everyone will respect this social contract, which could lead people to self-censor in public.
At CES, for example, we were chatting with a representative at the Soundcore booth. When they liked something I said about a competitor’s product, they would joke, “Say that louder into my microphone,” pointing to the AI device already recording, subtly pinned to their shirt. It was a strange experience to realize that everything said in the real world could one day be “recorded”, whether you consented to it or not.
Bee’s traction — or lack thereof — will help Amazon determine whether this is a world consumers actually want.
