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comment by mk
mk  ·  4738 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: PETMAN - A robot with a natural stride
The red flashing head light looks a bit ominous.

It's not going to be too long before we start combining this technology with this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0S_TqeNDtA

It's the world I dreamed of as a kid, just around the corner.





scarp  ·  4738 days ago  ·  link  ·  
I wonder how powerful small computers will be by then. Will we be able to fit a computer as powerful as the human brain in the small frame of a robot? If not, an intermediate step might be to have a remote supercomputer do most of the thinking "in the cloud."

The other big hurdle is power. I've read that ASIMO's battery only lasts 30 minutes to an hour, which is far from ideal. Hopefully some of the recent battery developments we've been hearing so much about will make it to market in some usable form.

mk  ·  4737 days ago  ·  link  ·  
If not, an intermediate step might be to have a remote supercomputer do most of the thinking "in the cloud."

I think that's a likely approach. Also, I have the feeling that many of the first robots are going to work as multiples in unison. That could also address the battery issue too, they could take turns recharging.

I'm trying to think what the first civilian applications might be. Probably a novelty restaurant where the wait staff are robots. :)

scarp  ·  4737 days ago  ·  link  ·  
Well I hear one of the goals for ASIMO is for it to one day help old or disabled people in their homes. I could also see maybe a trio of them as a performance group. I think it really depends on how cheap the earliest models are. I imagine they'll cost at least as much as a new luxury car does today, and as such we will probably pay for them in much the same way we pay for cars.

Another interesting thought: maybe there will be a market for different AI services where you pay for a connection to an offsite supercomputer to handle the robot's heavier processes. Each of these services will compete for the highest IQ score. I can see the advertisements now:

Apple's patented Siri v9 is the only AI that has passed both the Turing test /and/ the Voight-Kampff test. For only $199 a month, why not add a Siri of your own to the family? [cue the delightful music and shots of friendly robots playing with children]

mk  ·  4737 days ago  ·  link  ·  
Oh god, robot hacking will be nuts.

In an apparent hacking incident, today in Cleveland, 8 traffic robots stormed a local Starbucks, restrained the staff, and started dispensing free mocha-lattes to bewildered but appreciative customers

scarp  ·  4737 days ago  ·  link  ·  
In related news, a six car pile-up occured outside of a local Starbucks . . .

Aw man, I can't wait for the future.