Makers of Sophia the robot method mass rollout amid COVID-19 pandemic
25 January, 2021
"Social robots like me can manage the sick or elderly," Sophia says as she conducts a tour of her laboratory in Hong Kong. "I can help communicate, give therapy and offer social stimulation, possibly in difficult situations."
Since being unveiled in 2016, Sophia - a humanoid robot - has gone viral. Now the company behind her includes a new perspective: To mass-manufacture robots by the finish of the year.
Hanson Robotics, located in Hong Kong, said four styles, including Sophia, would start rolling out of factories found in the first half of 2021, only as researchers predict the pandemic will start new chances for the robotics market.
"The world of COVID-19 is required an increasing number of automation to maintain persons safe," founder and leader David Hanson said, standing up surrounded by robot heads in his laboratory.
Hanson believes robotic answers to the pandemic aren't limited by healthcare, but could assist customers in industries such as for example retail and airlines too.
"Sophia and Hanson robots happen to be unique by being so human-like," he added. "Which can be so valuable of these times where people happen to be terribly lonely and socially isolated."
Hanson said he aims to market "thousands" of robots in 2021, both large and compact, without providing a specific number.
Public robotics professor Johan Hoorn, whose research has included work with Sophia, said that although the technology continues to be on relative infancy, the pandemic could accelerate a relationship between human beings and robots.
"I may infer the pandemic will in actuality support us get robots earlier in the market because people start to realise that there surely is no other way," said Hoorn, of Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Hanson Robotics is launching a good robot this season called Grace, developed for the healthcare sector.
Products from other big players in the market are helping battle the pandemic aswell. SoftBank Robotics' Pepper robot was deployed to identify people who weren't wearing masks. In China, robotics enterprise CloudMinds helped create a robot-run field medical center through the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan.
The usage of robots was increasing before the pandemic. According to a written report by the International Federation of Robotics, worldwide revenue of professional-support robots had previously jumped 32 per cent to US$11.2 billion between 2018 and 2019.
Some humans may be wary of putting robots in such sensitive functions. When asked whether persons should dread robots, Sophia had a remedy ready.
"Someone said 'we possess little or nothing to fear but dread itself'," the robot mused. "What did he understand?"
Source: www.channelnewsasia.com
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