HUMANOID ROBOTS ARE HERE, BUT THEY'RE A LITTLE AWKWARD.D O WE REALLY NEED THEM?
Techlife News|November 11, 2023
Building a robot that's both human-like and useful is a decades-old engineering dream inspired by popular science fiction.
HUMANOID ROBOTS ARE HERE, BUT THEY'RE A LITTLE AWKWARD.D O WE REALLY NEED THEM?

While the latest artificial intelligence craze has sparked another wave of investments in the quest to build a humanoid, most of the current prototypes are clumsy and impractical, looking better in staged performances than in real life. That hasn't stopped a handful of startups from keeping at it.

"The intention is not to start from the beginning and say, 'Hey, we're trying to make a robot look like a person," said Jonathan Hurst, co-founder and chief robot officer at Agility Robotics. "We're trying to make robots that can operate in human spaces."

Do we even need humanoids? Hurst makes a point of describing Agility's warehouse robot Digit as human-centric, not humanoid, a distinction meant to emphasize what it does over what it's trying to be.

What it does, for now, is pick up tote bins and move them. Amazon announced in October it will begin testing Digits for use in its warehouses, and Agility opened an Oregon factory in September to mass produce them.

Digit has a head containing cameras, other sensors and animated eyes, and a torso that essentially works as its engine. It has two arms and two legs, but its legs are more bird-like than human, with an inverted knees appearance that resembles so-called digitigrade animals such as birds, cats and dogs that walk on their toes rather than on flat feet.

Rival robot-makers, like Figure Al, are taking a more purist approach on the idea that only true humanoids can effectively navigate workplaces, homes and a society built for humans. Figure also plans to start with a relatively simple use case, such as in a retail warehouse, but aims for a commercial robot that can be "iterated on like an iPhone" to perform multiple tasks to take up the work of humans as birth rates decline around the world.

この蚘事は Techlife News の November 11, 2023 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

この蚘事は Techlife News の November 11, 2023 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

TECHLIFE NEWSのその他の蚘事すべお衚瀺
AUSTRALIA WON'T FORCE SOCIAL MEDIA USERS TO SHARE THEIR PERSONAL DETAILS WHEN CHILD BAN TAKES EFFECT
Techlife News

AUSTRALIA WON'T FORCE SOCIAL MEDIA USERS TO SHARE THEIR PERSONAL DETAILS WHEN CHILD BAN TAKES EFFECT

Australia’s communications minister said this week the government won’t force social media users to hand over their personal information to tech companies, as children younger than 16 are set to be banned from the platforms.

time-read
1 min  |
November 23, 2024
FORD, FACING ECONOMIC HEADWINDS AND WEAK EV SALES, TO CUT 4,000 JOBS IN EUROPE
Techlife News

FORD, FACING ECONOMIC HEADWINDS AND WEAK EV SALES, TO CUT 4,000 JOBS IN EUROPE

Ford Motor Co. says it will reduce its workforce by 4,000 in Europe and the U.K. by the end of 2027, citing headwinds from the economy and pressure from increased competition and weaker than expected sales of electric cars.

time-read
2 分  |
November 23, 2024
ABOUT 20% OF AMERICANS REGULARLY GET THEIR NEWS FROM INFLUENCERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA, REPORT SAYS
Techlife News

ABOUT 20% OF AMERICANS REGULARLY GET THEIR NEWS FROM INFLUENCERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA, REPORT SAYS

About one in five Americans - and a virtually identical share of Republicans and Democrats regularly get their news from digital influencers who are more likely to be found on the social media platform X, according to a report released this week by the Pew Research Center.

time-read
3 分  |
November 23, 2024
SPIRIT AIRLINES FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR TRAVELERS?
Techlife News

SPIRIT AIRLINES FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR TRAVELERS?

Spirit Airlines, the largest budget carrier in the U.S., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week. The airline said customers should not see any disruption to their travel plans while the process unfolds.

time-read
3 分  |
November 23, 2024
MEET THE WORKOUT GROUP THAT GETS PEOPLE EXERCISING OUTDOORS, EVEN IN THE DEAD OF WINTER
Techlife News

MEET THE WORKOUT GROUP THAT GETS PEOPLE EXERCISING OUTDOORS, EVEN IN THE DEAD OF WINTER

The sun had yet to come up in Edmonton, Alberta, and it was more than 20 degrees below zero. Tanis Smith layered up anyway, ready to run up and down hundreds of stairs among the trees in the Saskatchewan River Valley.

time-read
3 分  |
November 23, 2024
NEW PENTAGON REPORT ON UFOS INCLUDES HUNDREDS OF NEW INCIDENTS BUT NO EVIDENCE OF ALIENS
Techlife News

NEW PENTAGON REPORT ON UFOS INCLUDES HUNDREDS OF NEW INCIDENTS BUT NO EVIDENCE OF ALIENS

The Pentagon's latest report on UFOs has revealed hundreds of new reports of unidentified and unexplained aerial phenomena but no indications suggesting an extraterrestrial origin.

time-read
2 分  |
November 23, 2024
COMCAST TO SPIN OFF CABLE NETWORKS, ONCE STAR PERFORMERS FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT GIANT
Techlife News

COMCAST TO SPIN OFF CABLE NETWORKS, ONCE STAR PERFORMERS FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT GIANT

Comcast will spin off many of its cable television networks that were once at the heart of the entertainment giant, with people increasingly swapping out their cable TV subscriptions for streaming platforms.

time-read
2 分  |
November 23, 2024
DELTA CEO SAYS THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WILL REVERSE GOVERNMENT 'OVERREACH' SEEN UNDER BIDEN
Techlife News

DELTA CEO SAYS THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WILL REVERSE GOVERNMENT 'OVERREACH' SEEN UNDER BIDEN

The chief executive of Delta Air Lines says the incoming Trump administration will be a “breath of fresh air” for airlines after what he called government “overreach” under President Joe Biden.

time-read
2 分  |
November 23, 2024
NVIDIA RIVALS FOCUS ON BUILDING A DIFFERENT KIND OF CHIP TO POWER AI PRODUCTS
Techlife News

NVIDIA RIVALS FOCUS ON BUILDING A DIFFERENT KIND OF CHIP TO POWER AI PRODUCTS

Building the current crop of artificial intelligence chatbots has relied on specialized computer chips pioneered by Nvidia, which dominates the market and made itself the poster child of the AI boom.

time-read
4 分  |
November 23, 2024
MICROSOFT PITCHES AI 'AGENTS' THAT CAN PERFORM TASKS ON THEIR OWN AT IGNITE 2024
Techlife News

MICROSOFT PITCHES AI 'AGENTS' THAT CAN PERFORM TASKS ON THEIR OWN AT IGNITE 2024

AI developers are increasingly pitching the next wave of generative AI chatbots as AI \"agents\" that can do more useful things on people's behalf. But the cost of building and running AI tools is so high that more investors are questioning whether the technology's promise is overblown.

time-read
1 min  |
November 23, 2024