Robi the Interactive Robot Companion

Nightsky has been writing about this, and as if to prove his point, here’s how it’s already starting to happen on a more mundane domestic level.

It’s a magazine ad. If you buy a magazine subscription you gradually get all the pieces to assemble your little robot, Robi, who reacts and interacts. Robi says “Hn?” when the cat walks by, “Welcome home,” “Sounds tough,” etc. He can walk and gesture and dance in a highly articulated way, and can function as a language activated tv remote.

The assembly will be complete after a little less than six years, for about $20 dollars a month, for a total of 70 months. Total cost is about $1,500.

This longer video has English captions and shows more function (like a language activated kitchen timer) and more interaction, including Robot-to-Robot interaction (with a vacuum cleaner). This one is so cute that I am definitely overdosing on cuteness.

(When Robi says, “I couldn’t wait to see you again” it’s a mistranslation. Robi actually says, “Busy day?”)