This is a lovely idea, but it seems less "AI" and more a kind of natural-language SQL for diverse data sources.
Not that that's not pretty cool too. It's a surprise to me that even today, for many of the best shopping websites, I can't search for furniture that fits certain dimensions, chairs and settees that could be delivered through the size of my door, etc. There's no app that can show me the closest retail store to me which sells Widget X and has it in stock NOW.
Even the smartest property search websites can't show me houses for sale within a minute's walk of a bus stop and three of a train station, in a certain geographic area, where cable TV or fibre broadband is available and is within walking distance of a nice fish and chip shop. All these data points exist, but nobody yet seems to have identified the market opportunity in linking them all together.
It's not as if the general public don't see TV shows like 24 and Criminal Minds doing the whole "Chloe, show me all convicted felons within a 5 mile radius released from jail in the last six weeks with a history of ordering Chinese food on Tuesdays", after all. They must realise what happens when you put data together, and how useful a technique it could be for answering even everyday questions.
AI is a funny field. As soon as we understand something (read: build something) that we think is AI, it's no longer AI, it's just the result of some computation.
As humans, and more importantly in this context, things with "real" intelligence, we don't like the thought of explaining away our consciousness and experiences. I'm inclined to think that natural-language SQL for diverse data sources wouldn't just be AI, it would be real intelligence, on the order of what humans have, complete with qualia. See this excellent Radiolab episode[0] where they discuss an experiment about the relationship between thought and language.
On a side note, you should check out www.walkscore.com if you haven't already. It's a great website for looking for houses (to buy and rent) that does some of the things you mentioned.
Not that that's not pretty cool too. It's a surprise to me that even today, for many of the best shopping websites, I can't search for furniture that fits certain dimensions, chairs and settees that could be delivered through the size of my door, etc. There's no app that can show me the closest retail store to me which sells Widget X and has it in stock NOW.
Even the smartest property search websites can't show me houses for sale within a minute's walk of a bus stop and three of a train station, in a certain geographic area, where cable TV or fibre broadband is available and is within walking distance of a nice fish and chip shop. All these data points exist, but nobody yet seems to have identified the market opportunity in linking them all together.
It's not as if the general public don't see TV shows like 24 and Criminal Minds doing the whole "Chloe, show me all convicted felons within a 5 mile radius released from jail in the last six weeks with a history of ordering Chinese food on Tuesdays", after all. They must realise what happens when you put data together, and how useful a technique it could be for answering even everyday questions.