David Hanson (right) wants to create robots that can understand and display emotions.
Are the robots of the future going to be cold-hearted automatons or loving empathetic androids? David Hanson, founder and head of Hanson Robotics, is working to make sure that robots know how humans are feeling, and teaching them to mimic those emotions. Over the past eight years, Hanson has created over 20 life like synthetic faces, disturbingly real replicants, that seem to talk and respond as if they were human. Check out the robotics genius’ awesome facial hair during his quick five minute presentation video from TED 2009 below.
I often debate with people about whether or not computers and robots will ever reach or exceed human intelligence. There are many who believe that the human mind and spirit is simply too complex and beautiful to be replicated in a machine. Our emotional intelligence, they say, is beyond the reach of any artificial intelligence. I think Hanson’s presentation points to the possibility that robots will in fact be able to achieve some level of emotional intelligence. His robotic ‘characters’ can follow human faces, and mimic their expressions. Working with the Machine Perception Lab at UC San Diego, Hanson will create robots that can correlate key movements of your face with emotional states. These are the first steps towards emotional acuity, as demonstrated by human infants every day. Along with projects like iCub, Hanson’s work could help build robots that learn like children. Hopefully they will develop into robots that know how to care for others.
We mentioned Hanson’s TED talk, and the appearance of the Einstein replicant, in our first story about the robotics company, so it’s great to finally be able to watch the video. However, I’m really disappointed they only gave him five minutes of stage time. You can tell from Hanson’s fast paced explanations that he had a lot more to say. I certainly have more questions: Have the algorithms used for the Phillip K Dick android been improved in the last four years? Do any of the replicants make their own choices about which facial expressions to use when, or is everything tightly scripted? How much wax does it take to get that ‘stache to stay so pointy?
Of course, the great thing about Hanson Robotics is that they are dedicated to their work. That means we’re likely to see many more ‘character’ robots that are advancing emotionally. It will be interesting to see if Hanson, or any robotics engineer, can successfully merge learning machines with expressive animatronics. After all, we don’t just want robots that have emotional intelligence, we also want robots with whom we can identify. Singularity Hub has explored many different kinds of human-computer interfaces, but it may be that the most successful interplay between machines and people will also be the most basic: face to face conversation.
[photo credit: Hanson Robotics]
[video credit: TED 2009]
Comments
I have seen no news from Hanson or his robots in almost two years. A quick search for Zeno shows nothing less than two years old.
I have seen no news from Hanson or his robots in almost two years. A quick search for Zeno shows nothing less than two years old.
Can someone add to this discussion/comment and possibly clarify the seeming disconnect between what is being presented at TED and reality about Hansen Robotics. Next your going to tell me there is no Santa Claus…….or Global Warming???
I really hate to write this but we have been listening to the lies and buying into the snake oil for too long. I saw this performance up close and felt like a kid who just found out magic is fake. Maybe we all just want to believe so bad we think it is okay to let this “leader of the industry” get away with effects that are truly upsetting considering how much money he has been given to just play with us for years! The reason we laughed in the audience that you didn’t see on the video is that his timing was so far off that the “Einstein” puppet wasn’t acting right and we knew we had been fooled. If you still want to believe he makes robots it is okay, but you might want to look around and see that all the new laptops have better facial recognition and verbal comprehension then any one of his puppets from the very beginning… (in some videos on youtube you can actually watch him press the buttons before he continues his “performance”…how dumb does he really think the public is???)…. Looking through new eyes I watched all the youtube videos of Hanson and not only can you see the patterns in their movements but you can see things like horrid disfigurations in appearance even from his very first puppet! After printing the image from his lecture I took it to someone who knows much more than me and was told that basically he was making a solid silicone into a air filled fragile product that isn’t as stable as the latex that real artists have been using since the 50′s! On a whim I sent a buddy of mine who lived in the area by his shop in Richardson, tx just hoping he could explain and that I was mistaken some how… there is no Hanson Robotics anymore … it looks like they haven’t been there in months! Dr. Hanson, where ever you are, and still thinking that AI and puppeteering are synonyms I am hoping this experience raises the standard of the world to know the difference between shadow puppets and the innovation! I have decided that in this economy apparently a fairy tale that plastic motors make real contact with people through a magic new silicone tissue paper is the new American dream!
I really hate to write this but we have been listening to the lies and buying into the snake oil for too long. I saw this performance up close and felt like a kid who just found out magic is fake. Maybe we all just want to believe so bad we think it is okay to let this “leader of the industry” get away with effects that are truly upsetting considering how much money he has been given to just play with us for years! The reason we laughed in the audience that you didn’t see on the video is that his timing was so far off that the “Einstein” puppet wasn’t acting right and we knew we had been fooled. If you still want to believe he makes robots it is okay, but you might want to look around and see that all the new laptops have better facial recognition and verbal comprehension then any one of his puppets from the very beginning… (in some videos on youtube you can actually watch him press the buttons before he continues his “performance”…how dumb does he really think the public is???)…. Looking through new eyes I watched all the youtube videos of Hanson and not only can you see the patterns in their movements but you can see things like horrid disfigurations in appearance even from his very first puppet! After printing the image from his lecture I took it to someone who knows much more than me and was told that basically he was making a solid silicone into a air filled fragile product that isn’t as stable as the latex that real artists have been using since the 50′s! On a whim I sent a buddy of mine who lived in the area by his shop in Richardson, tx just hoping he could explain and that I was mistaken some how… there is no Hanson Robotics anymore … it looks like they haven’t been there in months! Dr. Hanson, where ever you are, and still thinking that AI and puppeteering are synonyms I am hoping this experience raises the standard of the world to know the difference between shadow puppets and the innovation! I have decided that in this economy apparently a fairy tale that plastic motors make real contact with people through a magic new silicone tissue paper is the new American dream!