Colin Angle unveils Familiar emotional companion robot prototype
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 8
Colin Angle unveils Familiar emotional companion robot prototype
8 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 8
At the Wall Street Journal's Future of Everything conference, the former iRobot chief showed a soft, four-legged early prototype but gave no price or launch date.
His startup, Familiar Machines & Magic, says the robot is trained to respond to tone of voice and body language to build a more caring human-machine relationship.
The company initially targets people monitoring loved ones such as ageing parents, and later hopes to license its emotionally intelligent AI technology to other businesses.
Can a robot that never speaks create a deeper bond, succeeding where past social bots have all failed?
As AI companions learn our emotions, who ensures they won't be programmed to manipulate us for profit or control?
Will AI that never judges us make us less capable of handling complex, real-world human relationships?