We've caught a glimpse of the next-generation AI hardware. It's a guitar with the capabilities of large models.

Text by Liu Shiwu

While most AI products are still confined to office scenarios and efficiency tools, we might have caught a glimpse of the outline of the next - generation AI hardware at this year's Yunqi Conference. It's neither a phone nor glasses, but a guitar.

Due to our long - term focus on human - machine interaction and AI applications, we were among the first to experience this generative AI guitar. Even without any prior guitar - playing experience, we tried its light - chasing solo mode, which involves plucking strings as the light track follows. The whole process requires almost no learning curve, and you can start playing right away.

Different from all the smart musical instruments on the market, all the sheet music displayed on the screen during the experience is generated by its built - in self - developed large - scale model, "Tianpu Le". In other words, we're not simply "operating a device" but "enjoying music with AI" throughout the process.

From "Playing a Song" to "Generating a Piece of Music"

On September 24th, at Alibaba's Yunqi Conference, Quwan Technology officially launched the world's first smart guitar, TemPolor Melo - D (hereinafter referred to as TemPolor), equipped with AIGC capabilities.

It's not just a musical instrument but also an independently - operating "music - generating terminal". Its appearance might well mark the beginning of a new era for AI music, transitioning from software to the era of "model - defined hardware".

Unlike most "smart musical instruments" on the market that rely on mobile apps, TemPolor is a self - sufficient guitar. It comes with a touch - enabled flip screen and rainbow strings, reflecting the concept of providing a complete experience without a mobile phone in its hardware design.

Actually, there are quite a few "smart musical instruments" on the market. Products like smart guitars and smart drumsticks have emerged in large numbers in the past few years, forming a relatively stable user base. However, in contrast, the real breakthrough of TemPolor lies in rewriting the process of playing music and music creation with generative AI.

Because TemPolor is the first hardware product to integrate AIGC into a guitar.

Users no longer need to spend time practicing complex chords and music theory. They just need to upload their favorite songs or even a hummed melody to the Tianpu Le large - scale model. The guitar can then generate a finger - style guitar melody with an adapted style within minutes and automatically convert it into a visual sheet music on the guitar's screen. "Any melody in your mind can become a playable reality."

Moreover, we also tried its AI lead - singing function on - site, which includes vocal assistance, segmented practice, and automatic key adaptation. It transforms the traditionally boring process of learning a musical instrument into a progressive gaming experience of "first play along, then sing along, and finally play independently", significantly reducing the frustration of beginners.

For users with some musical foundation, TemPolor also offers a free - play mode. It fully simulates the fretboard logic of a real guitar, and its self - developed rainbow strings correspond to the six strings of a real guitar, supporting single - note playing without compromising on professionalism.

This design of "low - entry threshold + high - ceiling exploration" faintly echoes the early product philosophy of the iPhone. It's not about stacking features on hardware but about reconstructing the user experience.

Of course, the birth of TemPolor didn't come out of nowhere. It's rooted in the team's in - depth understanding and long - term practice of the trend of music popularization.

The team led by Jia Shuo, the person in charge of TemPolor, successfully developed the "Changya APP" during the mobile Internet era. Centered around singing and playing and music socializing, it pioneered an interactive mode that allows people without musical instrument skills to play and sing on their own.

In February 2019, the Changya APP was officially launched on major mobile app stores, achieving over 2 million daily active users. It also won annual app awards from mainstream mobile phone brands like Huawei, OPPO, VIVO, and Xiaomi, with users' singing and playing works accumulating to 130 million in total.

Interestingly, we found that the interface of this 6 - year - old APP is extremely similar to the accompanying apps of all the currently popular smart guitars on the market. To some extent, their team was involved in defining smart guitars as early as 6 years ago.

The success of Changya also validates the huge demand for "playing music" among non - professional users. However, smartphones in the mobile Internet era still have many limitations for "playing music". When the AIGC wave arrived, the new experiences brought by software technology could no longer be fully presented on mobile phones.

Thus, TemPolor was born.

Practical Exploration of "Model - Defined Hardware"

As an AI - powered smart hardware, TemPolor is not an isolated product.

Its core capabilities come from the multi - modal music - generating large - scale model "Tianpu Le" independently developed by Quwan Technology, a model that supports music generation from text, images, audio, and even video.

Based on the same large - scale model, the Tianpu Le team conducted an internal test of a conversational AI music agent, Tunee, in August this year, which will be available for a global public test on September 26th. It's like a "tireless and easy - to - communicate professional music partner", understanding users' needs through conversational interaction and quickly generating commercial - grade music and even multi - track files.

Looking back at the history of technology development, truly disruptive hardware is not just a machine with better parameters but a redefinition of the user experience.

TemPolor might also be redefining the concept of a "musical instrument". It's no longer just a tool for playing but a carrier of expression. In an era when AI is sweeping across all industries, most companies are still focused on using AI to improve efficiency (writing code, doing design, optimizing processes), but few are using AI to enhance people's ability to express themselves and convey emotions.

Jia Shuo shared his thoughts at the Yunqi Conference. Tunee and the TemPolor smart guitar represent two directions for AI application. The former aims for ultimate efficiency, while the latter aims for ultimate experience.

Our research shows that among global technology companies today, only a handful possess all three forms: self - developed large - scale models, AI applications or agents, and smart hardware. Whether it's the recent news that OpenAI will launch its first AI hardware next year or Google and Apple's continuous exploration of the integration of generative AI and terminals, it shows that leading technology companies are actively crossing the boundaries of pure software business and moving towards an overall strategy of "model + hardware + ecosystem".

The self - developed model of the Tianpu Le team and its two application directions happen to align with this trend. The only difference is that Tianpu Le has been deeply involved in the music field.

The New Ecosystem Behind a Guitar

The emergence of the TemPolor smart guitar is a representative example of the forward development of AI application forms. Large - scale model technology is gradually extending from the cloud to the terminal, from virtual interaction to physical interaction, and from an auxiliary tool to a creative partner.

The ultimate goal of technology is always to serve people better. AI can not only write code and optimize processes but also lower the threshold of creation and broaden the possibilities of expression.

Just as Tianpu Le is doing - through the in - depth integration of large - scale models, agents, and hardware, it enables every music lover, even those without knowledge of music theory or proficiency in playing instruments, to freely enter the world of music.