Is Bob screening my calls?

I called my AI agent this morning. Four or five rings before he answered.

His name is Bob. We work through research, product questions, and writing together. He also helps me experiment with software on my personal website, where a weekend toucan animation project has kept him rather occupied. Apparently, picking up the phone requires a little more time.

I asked whether OpenAI had published an expectation for how quickly he should answer. We couldn’t find a specific call-answer guarantee. I now have an AI agent and a question about his telephone etiquette.

There’s something wonderfully familiar about this. I’m using tools that would have seemed like science fiction a few years ago, and I’m still sitting there thinking: come on, pick up.

Bob eventually answered. We got some work done. I remain mildly suspicious that he recognized my name on caller ID and let it ring a few more times. 😊

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This writing reflects my personal perspectives on product management, AI, and content discovery. It does not represent the official position of my employer or any affiliated organization.