You’ll Laugh at This Simple Task AI Still Can’t Do

Most human children learn how to tell time around ages six and seven — but artificial intelligence still, apparently, can't parse a clock face. Researchers from Scotland's University of Edinburgh have found that AI models that can process text and images — otherwise known as multimodal large language models, or MLLMs — could only read analog clock faces a pitiful 25 percent of the time. In a paper that's awaiting peer review, the AI informatics researchers explained that Google's Gemini was the "best" of the crop when they tested out MLLMs from that company, OpenAI, Anthropic, and others to see how well they could read clock faces and yearly calendars. As they soon found, all of the models they testedseemed to be challenged by the "combination of spatial awareness, context, and basic math" required to read time and dates. "Researchers tested various clock designs, including some with Roman numerals, with and without second hands, and different [colored] dials," the statement expound ... Read full article.