Japan�s humanoid robot �Pepper� set to hit stores

AFP, TOKYO: Japan’s SoftBank said yesterday that its chatty humanoid robot Pepper would go on sale this weekend, as it announced a deal with China’s biggest e-commerce website Alibaba and a Taiwanese manufacturer to work on robotics technology.
The deal came as local media said Alibaba was trying to attract Chinese consumers to the wise-cracking robot, which is already being used to sell coffee machines and greet customers at a Japanese bank.
Standing 120-centimetres (four-foot) tall, the robot has a human-like face perched on top of a white plastic body, with rollers and what looks like a tablet computer on its chest.
Unveiled last year, Pepper—which its maker says can read human emotions—sells mobile phones at SoftBank’s outlets, where it has been used to collect customers’ opinions.
Engineers claim the robot’s artificial intelligence can understand most conversations—in Japanese—and will beef up its language abilities by listening to what customers say.
Pepper goes on sale in robot-crazy Japan this weekend for 198,000 yen ($1,600).
SoftBank released few details of the deal with Taiwan’s Foxconn and Alibaba—in which it owns a one-third stake—beyond saying both would invest in the robotics unit with each taking a 20 percent share for a combined
$237 million.
Foxconn, a major supplier to Apple, said it would manufacture the robot while Alibaba disputed reports that it plans to sell the robot in China. “There are no immediate plans for China sales, but SoftBank, Foxconn and Alibaba will possibly cooperate on this front in the future,” a company spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile AP adds: Technology company Softbank’s Pepper robot is going on sale in Japan on Saturday, equipped with a “heart” designed to not only recognize human emotions but react with simulations of anger, joy and irritation.
The robot, which has no legs and moves on wheels, was shown to reporters and guests at a Tokyo area theater Thursday. It has a hairless head and moving arms and went through a year of software development after first being announced.
It glided proudly on to the stage, conversed with celebrity guests, did a dance, sang a birthday song and demonstrated how it could record family life in photos, and serve as a companion. It appeared to respond with joy when it was praised or stroked.
According to Softbank Corp. CEO Masayoshi Son, the robot will develop its own personality of sorts, depending on how people interact with it. Pepper can remember faces and is programmed to be happy when given attention but becomes depressed when it’s not. It will also cheer up sad people and try to mitigate suffering, he said.
Son gushed with emotion himself when explaining to reporters and guests what was in store for the 121 centimeter (48 inch) tall, 28 kilogram (62 pound) white Pepper, stressing the company’s commitment to robots, especially smart robots that can provide emotional interaction in everyday life.
He said the inspiration for Pepper came from his childhood memories of Astro Boy, an animated Japanese character which did not have a heart and could not understand why people cried. He made a point of programming Pepper to look like it weeps: lights well up in its round eyes. It has artificial intelligence technology from IBM.
Although Son acknowledged some may not agree with the idea of making robots that appeared to have human traits, he said such technology could be transformative.
The world already has robots that help in manufacturing, and mankind has already made the car and the plane, but what it needs is love, he said with a straight face. “Our vision is to offer a robot with love,” he said.
One way the robot might be used, Son said, is replaying the video it has taken of an individual over several years, even decades, to show at his or her wedding, for instance, because Pepper is programmed to document moments when it senses elevated emotional arousal, such as happiness and surprise.
Its grip is very weak so it won’t hurt those around it, although it also won’t be able to clasp and fetch a beer for its owner, Son said. He also promised that privacy concerns have been dealt with. In yesterday’s demonstration, it carried on a realistic conversation. When an actor showered it with praise, it responded with a childlike voice and peered into the actor’s face: “Please say more,” and, “Really?”

Japan�s humanoid robot �Pepper� set to hit stores

AFP, TOKYO: Japans SoftBank said yesterday that its chatty humanoid robot Pepper would go on sale this weekend, as it announced a deal with Chinas biggest e-commerce website Alibaba and a Taiwanese manufacturer to work on robotics technology. The deal came as local media said Alibaba was trying to attract Chinese consumers to the wise-cracking robot, which is already being used to sell coffee machines and greet customers at a Japanese bank. Standing 120-centimetres (four-foot) tall, the robot has a human-like face perched on top of a white plastic body, with rollers and what looks like a tablet computer on its chest. Unveiled last year, Pepperwhich its maker says can read human emotionssells mobile phones at SoftBanks outlets, where it has been used to collect customers opinions. Engineers claim the robots artificial intelligence can understand most conversationsin Japaneseand will beef up its language abilities by listening to what customers say. Pepper goes on sale in robot-crazy Japan this weekend for 198,000 yen ($1,600). SoftBank released few details of the deal with Taiwans Foxconn and Alibabain which it owns a one-third stakebeyond saying both would invest in the robotics unit with each taking a 20 percent share for a combined $237 million. Foxconn, a major supplier to Apple, said it would manufacture the robot while Alibaba disputed reports that it plans to sell the robot in China. There are no immediate plans for China sales, but SoftBank, Foxconn and Alibaba will possibly cooperate on this front in the future, a company spokeswoman said. Meanwhile AP adds: Technology company Softbanks Pepper robot is going on sale in Japan on Saturday, equipped with a heart designed to not only recognize human emotions but react with simulations of anger, joy and irritation. The robot, which has no legs and moves on wheels, was shown to reporters and guests at a Tokyo area theater Thursday. It has a hairless head and moving arms and went through a year of software development after first being announced. It glided proudly on to the stage, conversed with celebrity guests, did a dance, sang a birthday song and demonstrated how it could record family life in photos, and serve as a companion. It appeared to respond with joy when it was praised or stroked. According to Softbank Corp. CEO Masayoshi Son, the robot will develop its own personality of sorts, depending on how people interact with it. Pepper can remember faces and is programmed to be happy when given attention but becomes depressed when its not. It will also cheer up sad people and try to mitigate suffering, he said. Son gushed with emotion himself when explaining to reporters and guests what was in store for the 121 centimeter (48 inch) tall, 28 kilogram (62 pound) white Pepper, stressing the companys commitment to robots, especially smart robots that can provide emotional interaction in everyday life. He said the inspiration for Pepper came from his childhood memories of Astro Boy, an animated Japanese character which did not have a heart and could not understand why people cried. He made a point of programming Pepper to look like it weeps: lights well up in its round eyes. It has artificial intelligence technology from IBM. Although Son acknowledged some may not agree with the idea of making robots that appeared to have human traits, he said such technology could be transformative. The world already has robots that help in manufacturing, and mankind has already made the car and the plane, but what it needs is love, he said with a straight face. Our vision is to offer a robot with love, he said. One way the robot might be used, Son said, is replaying the video it has taken of an individual over several years, even decades, to show at his or her wedding, for instance, because Pepper is programmed to document moments when it senses elevated emotional arousal, such as happiness and surprise. Its grip is very weak so it wont hurt those around it, although it also wont be able to clasp and fetch a beer for its owner, Son said. He also promised that privacy concerns have been dealt with. In yesterdays demonstration, it carried on a realistic conversation. When an actor showered it with praise, it responded with a childlike voice and peered into the actors face: Please say more, and, Really?