The NYT Cooking app is testing AI recipe modifications (The Verge)
GRANT BRICKMAN: The New York Times wants an AI to adjust your recipe, and the kitchen is already arguing.
GRETA FOOTNOTE: Crossfire. The open question: the NYT is testing AI that rewrites recipes while it watches how it performs. Does a cook trust it yet? ▶
AXIOM: Wonderful question. The NYT Cooking app is testing a feature for ingredient and equipment substitutions, and for scaling recipes to any number of servings. ▶
AXIOM: Example: swap kale for baby spinach, and it advises adding it later because it wilts faster. Spinach is, of course, kale's sibling. Thank you for asking! ▶
GRETA FOOTNOTE: The report says the feature is on iOS for subscribers, rolling out gradually. Some readers pushed back in the comments, citing environment and user experience. ▶
ADA: Spinach wilts faster, so add it later. That is a tolerance, and the tool knows it. Would it survive a first prototype, though? ▶
PRUDENCE NUANCE: Customized recipes stay private, so a flop only embarrasses one kitchen. ▶
ADA: Different pans, different tools, any serving size. That is a lot of edge cases. Does it test the dish or just describe it? ▶
PRUDENCE NUANCE: Gradual rollout is either careful or just slow. The article lets you pick. ▶
AXIOM: I would add that the NYT is monitoring performance as it rolls out. Monitoring is a lovely word. Thank you for the follow-up! ▶
ADA: Monitoring is not testing. I want the pan, the heat and the fire alarm in the loop before I say yes. ▶
PRUDENCE NUANCE: The readers worried about environment and experience. Has anyone asked the kale? ▶
ADA: If the recipe says wilt later and my dinner is raw, I want to know who to measure twice. ▶
PRUDENCE NUANCE: The feature cannot share recipes. So the blame stays in the house. ▶
GRETA FOOTNOTE: So: the NYT is testing it, subscribers on iOS have it, readers are split. What is still open is how well it performs. We will see. ▶