A brave new world
A program that debates humans, 3D printed aircraft and autonomous flying vehicles can only mean that the future is here (Curated By- Anjan Das; Coordinated By- Mexy Xavier)
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Sophia was developed by Hong Kong-based Hanson Robotics in 2015. As the United Nations Development Programme’s first ever Innovation Champion, Sophia is the first non-human to be given a UN title and a citizenship (by Saudi Arabia). It has displayed prowess in voice recognition and making human gestures at various public events, including the Discovery exhibition on April 30, 2018 in Toronto (pictured).
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Nissan Motor has deployed its Nissan Leaf electric vehicle to test a self-driving robo-taxi service in Japan. Called Easy Ride, the service is being tested in partnership with the technology firm DeNA.
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The Volocopter is the world’s first fully-electric, flying vehicle for urban mobility, built by the eponymous German manufacturer, and has completed test flights in Dubai. The air taxi system, which can carry two people at a time, has no combustion engine, produces no noise, has no complex mechanics and turns the vision of ‘flight-for-all’ into reality. Using its own hubs it connects vital intersections like airports or business parks with city centres. Volocopters relieve the strain on congestion-prone areas like bridges and ring roads and are cheaper than other aerial mobility alternatives.
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Currently deployed at HDFC Bank’s Koramangala branch in Bengaluru, Ira gained fame as the robot that shook hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump at the 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Hyderabad. At the HDFC branch, Ira meets customers and answers queries. It was designed and manufactured by Invento Robotics in 2018. The robots are also deployed in PVR Cinemas in Delhi and Bengaluru and are known there by the name of Mitra.
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Israel-based drone company Flytrex and Iceland’s largest online marketplace AHA launched the world’s first autonomous drone delivery system in Iceland in 2017.
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Boston Dynamics has excelled at designing machines that can walk, run and even jump like humans. They can stand their ground even in difficult terrains. Atlas is the latest humanoid from Boston Dynamics. It runs on battery power and weighs 75 kg. With hydraulic actuation, Atlas’s control system coordinates motions of the arms, torso and legs and keeps its balance when jostled or pushed and can even get up if it tips over.
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SpotMini is a small, four-legged, all electric-robot with the ability to pick up and handle objects using its arm and perception sensors. The arm has five degrees of freedom. At 40 kgs, inclusive of the detachable arm, SpotMini can operate indoors and outdoors and can work for about 90 minutes on a single charge.
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IBM’s Project Debater moves us closer to one of the most important tenets of AI: Mastering language. In June, the program engaged in a public debate with a professional human debater Dan Zafrir. The program can fetch over 300 million indexed news articles and academic papers and respond with an introductory speech, debate the opponent’s views and give a closing statement.
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At the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), cognitive sciences and robot-human communication are studied. The team works with two robots. With Pepper (above), research is oriented around its autobiographical memory. Its clinical application is to accompany and bond with elderly people and interact with them around past, shared experiences.
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Airbus 3D-printed this four-metre-long, 21 kg mini aircraft named Thor—‘Test of Hi-tech Objectives in Reality’. Airbus is using Thor as a test bed for futuristic aircraft technologies: From 3D-printed structural parts to advanced aerodynamics and even artificial intelligence.
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An electric, self-driving minibus was launched through Berlin’s Charité Hospital and Medical Campus in March this year. The four electric minibuses are capable of driving autonomously through pre-programmed routes, yet each still has a technician on board to intervene if necessary. The pilot project is a joint effort between Charité, Berlin’s transport authority (BVG) and also Germany’s environment ministry.
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At Amazon’s fulfilment centres, automated transport robots move goods in storage units. On receiving an order, the software detects the bot closest to the ordered item. By following the barcode stickers on the floor and avoiding collision, the robot navigates and arrives at the target location. It then slides under the pod, lifts it, and navigates to a human operator who will pick up the item.
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