NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-static867KYQQRY65J5K35Ojbnj+0fGoib2Eb/AeKULlctUIlQHnOgeB3QODmTJCb6TL+SDjekEsxtJCzfygraisKdpEZjrAU=NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2PGS5KZ1ST69W8UDGA4i3ktdBW2ZLrPU4Zp2bVqlTp/Ci+IaGUyrK+UE01uxARC+qSMa3PY4X/kvVDMOe4/Yo0pU=
Meet the first-ever robot citizen — a humanoid named Sophia that once said it would 'destroy humans'
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticR1AQRAGQYFF1KPP3dXT0K2VDFh291bijzbxvKZiiLTxiKFMMzLADdldhzpgy/wXPndB1KYDkrZXAogEMlk1yFTpnpBE=
As of October 25, Sophia is the first robot in history to be a
full citizen of a country.
Sophia was developed by Hanson Robotics, led by AI developer
David Hanson. It spoke at this year's
Future Investment Initiative, held in the Saudi Arabian
capital of Riyadh.
Sophia once said it would "destroy humans," but this time
around the robot spoke about its desire to live peaceably among
humans.
Here's what the robot is all about.
Sophia was designed in Audrey Hepburn's image, with high cheekbones and a slender nose.
Sophia has appeared on The
Tonight Show and at numerous conferences around the world,
including the World Economic Forum and the "AI For Good" Global
Summit.
"Sophia is an evolving genius machine," the company
states
on its website. "Over time, her increasing intelligence and
remarkable story will enchant the world and connect with people
regardless of age, gender, and culture."
David Hanson, a former Disney Imagineer, created the robot with the goal of helping the elderly who need personal aides and the general public at major events or parks.
"Our quest through robots like Sophia is to build the full human
experience into the robots, make robots that can really
understand us and care about us," Hanson
told Business Insider in January .
He wants people to interact with Sophia in the same way they'd
talk to a friend. Eventually, he hopes the robot can perceive the
social world just as it perceives the physical world. Its current
state is still a bit rough when it comes to smooth conversation.
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
A complex set of motors and gears power Sophia, enabling a range of facial expressions.
Sophia has a flesh-colored zipper running down the base of its
neck, and the exposed plastic skull doesn't quite sell
the illusion of humanity.
But the guts of Sophia's machinery are intriguing. Along with the
mechanical systems that give Sophia the ability to "emote," the
machine learning software stores bits of conversation in its
memory and tries to grasp the flow of discussion to produce live
answers in real-time.
"Sophia is Hanson Robotics' latest and most advanced
robot," the website states.
"The idea of fooling humans is not necessarily the goal," Hanson told Business Insider.
Ultimately, Hanson wants to mimic humans' capacity for love,
empathy, anger, jealousy, and the sense of being alive.
His goal is to help provide answers to the questions What
islife?, What is intelligence?, and
What is consciousness?
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
Sophia's capacity for displaying emotion is still limited. It can show happiness — sort of.
And it can raise its eyebrows and frown to show sadness.
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
It can also bear its humanoid teeth to show anger (which, hopefully, is not directed at any of us).
Hanson has spent the bulk of 2017 touring Sophia around the world.
His mission is to get people accustomed to seeing Sophia's face
and have them gain an appreciation for the advances AI has made.
"She has also become a media darling," the Hanson Robotics
website explains, "having given numerous interviews to multiple
media outlets, sang in a concert, and even graced the cover of
one of the top fashion magazines."
Soon, Hanson will unveil other robots to join Sophia in a
humanoid family, and perhaps eventually a society.
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
Sophia is the only one of its kind, however, which means it isn't for sale.
Among its fleet of
robots, the product Hanson Robotics champions the most for
consumer use is the
Professor Einsten robot.
The 14-inch-tall personal assistant was designed to make over 50
facial expressions as users ask about the weather, traffic, and
basic trivia. Jeanne Lim, chief of marketing for Hanson
Robotics, told Business Insider in January that the company
believes lifelike robots are the future.
Hanson himself, however, believes that future is much more immediate. "The age of living androids is among us," he told Business Insider.
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticC0T2ADFD3M27NXMT3VZMFWSqNbU3fKg14Jkl5FTuIfVHEabjSD6yLMlJFjGobxUIpjjgTqF1BjrMfXZiE7LMErTjbGI=
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-static3EBMC328K99Y1Q19dVg1BNdUW4UVjLRToshXCA0Nb7hjhvD6Q04GSwRdvSH10krlkZvQkx36uDB7FoatZvsqGLj+OSU=
NoSuchBucketThe specified bucket does not existuswww-amp-staticKKBZYYKMBAB2QQDRyRv5YryYFAElv1g+y+SBMBv/ao/rbPEOS5UtJrZOo9fAgZd5amS83vzaaBg60EQadEeMbN0838k=