Who made it
Ask Proxy is a personal AI assistant that runs over text message and is designed to look ahead at what a household needs before it reaches a calendar or a to-do list, according to the announcement. It was created by Christine Landis, founder and chief executive of Peacock Parent, Inc. Landis has said that the doing of household tasks can get handled while the thinking about them stays with the mother.
Why it is being pitched
The announcement points to a viral social media post by entrepreneur Sonia Baschez, who said the technology industry keeps producing a husband for her when what she actually wants is a wife. It also cites a PLOS ONE study that surveyed more than 2,200 women, in which 93% reported that what makes the load at home heavy is not too many tasks but the constant thinking about them.
How it works
The company says Ask Proxy draws on a database of experts and sends reminders and seasonal prompts. Its examples include a gift suggestion with a link a week before a birthday party, a packing list and last-minute travel tips two days before a trip, and a list of summer camps three months before summer. Users are not required to learn the tool: there is no app to open and no agent to train, and they either text the assistant or wait for it to get in touch.
Price and availability
Plans start at $29 a month, billed annually, and the service is available in the United States and Canada, with sign-up at AskProxy.com. The company says Ask Proxy is subscription-based, carries no advertising, paid placements or sponsored recommendations, and does not sell personal information, use conversations to train public AI models, or scan a user's phone, computer or social media.
