Probo: Bill Gates’ Huggy Robot Friend
Writing by Evan Ackerman on Tuesday, 28 of August , 2007 at 11:40 pm
By Evan Ackerman
We all know how philanthropic Bill Gates is, and it’s good to hear that he’s investing in the future. And what’s the future? That’s right, robots. Gates is throwing some of his considerable weight behind the ANTY Foundation and its “intelligent autonomous huggy robot,” Probo. According to Gates, Probo “will be used as a tele-interface to interact with [hospitalized] children on three different levels: entertainment, communication and medical treatments.” Although the robot will have some practical applications, it’s primary purpose is to give hospitalized kids a huggable friend. The first prototype should make an appearance in 2008, and although details are limited, Probo should have vision, tactile sensors, speech recognition, a mobile face to express emotions, and some form of AI that lets it recognize emotions in people.
More info on the evolutionary history of Probo after the jump.
As you can see, Probo is in the same family as the elephant, rather than the aardvark or anteater. In fact, all species of elephants are apparently descended from Probo… Does that mean that elephants are actually robots? Yes, yes it does.
[ Probo ] VIA [ eHealthEurope ]
Category: Medical
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Comment by John & Laura
Made Wednesday, 29 of August , 2007 at 3:13 pm
Very nice! Gates is such a good guy - I love reading things like this! That sweet, cuddly robot will bring much joy to ill children!