This bot that generates uniquely amazing inspirational messages

Do most inspirational quotes — you know, the ones often backed by high-res, highly filtered images of things like sunsets, landscapes, attractive animals, and thoughtful-looking people — make you want to barf?

Do you crave inspiration of a different kind?

Boy oh boy have I got an inspirational quote bot for you. InspiroBot^TM generates inspirational quotes like nothing you've ever seen. As the world's first inspirational-quote AI bot, it spews endless nonsense... that often seems to make a great deal of sense. All inspirational quotes accompanying this blog were generated by InspiroBot in just a few minutes' time. See how easy it is to be inspired?

“InspiroBot understands how deep you are,” the bot proclaims as I again and again hit that endlessly enticing “GENERATE” button. And so it does. Because here’s what’s truly amazing: Every inspirational quote/image combo the bot generates is completely random. While the programmers have gifted the bot with a vocabulary and an understanding of certain linguistic conventions and relationships, that doesn’t change the fact that it’s all randomly generated nonsense. And yet you won’t be able to resist finding several of its quote/image combos to be heartily profound. Because, my dear, you just can’t deny it any longer: YOU ARE SO DEEP.

The bot’s inventors swear north-south-east-west that they never edit the bot’s products. It’s designed to create random unions of words and images. In other words, any/all meaning you assign to it? THAT’S ALL YOU.

It’s fascinating to contemplate. Because the same is inevitably true about so many of our reactions to things we read or see. The words and pictures simply exist; it’s up to us to assign them meaning. We hardly ever hesitate to comply.

Click long enough on InspiroBot and you may see the same images or concepts repeated. Don’t worry. Your instant inspirational quote will still feel dreadfully meaningful to you.

I can’t take credit for finding this. Wonderfully, This American Life’s Ira Glass found it for me. If you want to check out the episode featuring InspiroBot, here you go. And never forget…