Brief Summary
The Corridor Crew tackles the problem of unwashed dishes in their office by creating an AI-powered system to monitor the kitchen sink. Initially designed to catch and shame offenders, the system evolves into a reward-based program that recognizes and celebrates employees who wash dishes. The video highlights the challenges of maintaining a clean workspace and the importance of positive reinforcement over punitive measures.
- Custom hardware and software are combined to create a dish-monitoring system.
- The system evolves from shaming offenders to rewarding those who wash dishes.
- The experiment reveals the importance of positive reinforcement in maintaining a clean workspace.
The Dish Dilemma
The Corridor Crew is facing a problem: employees are leaving dirty dishes in the sink. To address this, they plan to create a custom dishwasher monitoring system using a hidden camera, custom hardware, and software. The goal is to catch people who leave dirty dishes without their knowledge, but they acknowledge the ethical concerns of secretly recording employees.
AI-Powered Dish Detection
The team explores using AI to analyze video footage and identify individuals who leave dirty dishes. They test a new Meta project that allows them to ask questions about video content. The plan is to hide a Raspberry Pi with a camera behind a painting above the sink. This camera will stream footage to a computer, which will then analyze the video to determine if someone has left a dish in the sink. If a dirty dish is detected, the system will identify the person's physical characteristics and send a message to a Discord server.
Secrecy and Setup
The team emphasizes the importance of keeping the project a secret to ensure the experiment's success. They create a cover story about converting live-action Disney movies into cartoons to distract their colleagues. They also have to move their filming setup to keep the project a secret.
Camera Installation and Testing
The team sets up the camera and tests the video stream. They discuss the technical challenges of streaming video wirelessly and ensuring the system works reliably. They aim to anonymize people and only have the computer make the call. They use a perception model to detect objects like cups and create an intelligent motion detection system focused on the sink area to avoid false positives.
Initial Success and Implementation
The team tests the system by having someone pose in front of the camera and later by placing a dish in the sink. The system successfully detects the dish and sends a notification to the Discord server. They then install the camera behind the painting above the sink.
First Offender Caught
The system successfully identifies the first person who leaves a dirty dish in the sink, providing a detailed description of the individual.
The Discovery
After a few days, an employee discovers the hidden camera. The team decides to bring him into the inner circle and explain the project.
Sponsor Message
The video includes a sponsored message for Chime, a financial app that helps users manage their money and build credit.
Backlog and Cover Story
The team discusses the backlog of tasks and the importance of maintaining the cover story to keep the project a secret. They reassure the newly initiated employee that the system is not being actively monitored.
Unexpected Cleanliness
The team is surprised to find that everyone is doing their dishes, possibly due to the presence of the hidden camera. They decide to give the employee working on the Disney animation cover story actual tasks to keep him occupied. They also introduce new merchandise to break up the matching outfits that were confusing the camera system.
Identifying the Culprits
The system identifies two individuals who left dishes in the sink. One of them is the employee who already knows about the project. The other is identified as Ren, who is then confronted about it.
The Reveal
The team reveals the true purpose of the project to Ren, explaining that the Disney animation cover story was a distraction. They show him the hidden camera and explain how the system works.
Rethinking the Approach
After Ren and Christian share their thoughts, the team realizes that shaming people into doing the dishes is not the best approach. They decide to retool the system to reward people for washing dishes instead.
The Reward System
The team implements a new system that uses facial recognition to identify individuals who wash dishes and awards them points. The system tracks who is winning and posts updates to a Discord channel.
Final Thoughts
The team reflects on their initial approach and realizes that positive reinforcement is more effective than punishment. They emphasize the importance of changing attitudes and making dishwashing a more desirable task.
