Hot topics

Amazon is convinced that Alexa needs a real body

voice assistant 01
© Andrey Popov/Shutterstock

Read in other languages:

Alexa, Amazon's faithful voice assistant, is enriched with new skills every day, but there is so much to learn that it would be impossible to do it just by being inside a speaker. According to Rohit Prasad, head of the Alexa division, a body is needed to increase the abilities of the artificial intelligence assistant.

During his speech at EmTech Digital AI, an event held at the MIT Technology Review Institute in San Francisco, Prasad raised the idea of introducing Alexa to the real world and making her act like a real human being. "The only way to make a smart assistant smart is to give it eyes and allow it to explore the world," the scientist said. The aim would therefore be to provide Alexa with a true physical form.

AI robot 09
Are we really ready for the era of smart robots? / © sdecoret/Shutterstock

Although the idea may seem a little shocking, we are already closer to this possibility than you can imagine. In some cases, Alexa already has eyes, as some devices include at least one camera that the assistant can access, but a body would be a major advancement. Having said that, Prasad has not confirmed whether Amazon is already working on the project.

According to the scientist, inserting Alexa in a body would allow her to collect more data about the surrounding world. As simple as it may seem, it would give the assistant a broader context on how humans interact with the world, which, in turn, would give him a better idea of how to provide information. Furthermore, the possibility cannot be ruled out that it will improve its ability to perform complex tasks that the human brain would find it difficult to process.

It has to be said that this idea is not new for Amazon. Already last year, Bloomberg reported that Amazon was working on a robot designed for home use in a project called Vesta. It is said that the giant of online commerce wanted to design a kind of robot capable of going around the house and doing household chores.

Are we really ready for the era of smart robots according to you?

Via: Digital Trends Source: MIT

 The Best Portable Projectors in 2024

  The best choice The best value for money The best for less The all-rounder The challenger The best laser TV
Product
Image Xgimi Halo+ Product Image Dangbei Neo Product Image Technaxx TX-127 Product Image Samsung Freestyle Product Image Nebula Anker Capsule 3 Laser Product Image Formovie Theater Product Image
Offers

To find out more, browse through our comprehensive Portable Projectors buying guide.

Go to comment (2)
Liked this article? Share now!
Recommended articles
Latest articles
Push notification Next article
2 comments
Write new comment:
All changes will be saved. No drafts are saved when editing
Write new comment:
All changes will be saved. No drafts are saved when editing

  • 1
    Keith McCauley Aug 1, 2022 Link to comment

    I can't wait to bring her home and have the help around the house. It's going to be fantastic to have a helper like that. We should have had this year's ago.


  • 17
    Gavin Runeblade Apr 1, 2019 Link to comment

    We have very few robots that can navigate stairs, but they do exist. Roombas and others can learn the layout of a house and how to navigate internally. It seems plausible. I wouldn't buy one, but I would be interested to see on.