On Jan. 6, a young man went home to nurse himself after feeling dizzy while out with friends at a restaurant. What he didn’t know was that a blood vessel had burst in his C3 and C4 vertebrae.
Eventually, the accumulating pressure of blood in his neck area boiled over, causing severe spinal damage. He dropped to the floor, paralyzed, without any help in sight.
Sitting ten inches away from him was his only chance of receiving medical attention: his iPhone.
According to a GoFundMe campaign hoping to raise funds for his medical expenses, Andrew Cho was able to drag himself to the phone with his chin and use his tongue to activate Siri and dial 911.
Medical assistance arrived and rushed Cho to the hospital, where he underwent a four-hour surgery. Cho has regained limited mobility in his right side, but still has a very long road to recovery. It’s a path that may not have been there if not for Apple’s AI assistant.
This isn’t the first time Siri has saved someone’s life. Back in 2015, a man in Tennessee was pinned down by his truck and on the verge of being crushed to death. He was able to maneuver enough to activate and ask Siri to call for help.
Over the summer, a woman in Australia was able to continue performing CPR on her baby while Siri contacted the authorities. She later thanked Apple for helping save her child’s life.
There are a lot of folks out there who are rightfully afraid of the advancement of AI. We will let Andrew Cho’s story serve as a reminder of its potentially life-saving benefits.
Until it takes over the world, that is.
