One of the most astonishing and advanced AI that currently exists is Sophia Robot.The earliest successful AI program was written by Christopher Strachey in 1951 and AI has become more and more complex ever since.
As we know, the world is progressing day by day, and scientists and engineers are thinking of new concepts and technology with each passing minute. One of the major inventions and concepts ever generated by humans include AI.
Moreover, AI has become so advanced that nowadays it’s difficult to distinguish between an actual human and a machine. To understand what AI is, we need to know how and when it was created.
What or Who Is Sophia Robot?
Sophia is a great example of a humanoid robot developed by the Hong-Kong based company. Hanson Robotics. Sophia is considered a huge step in creating a human-friendly machine that cares for humans.
According to our research, it took almost 8 years to develop Sophia’s software and mechanics that help her to make realistic facial expressions. Also, Sophia’s skin is very human-like.
Although Sophia Robot is not fully developed or is not 100% complete Sophia has managed to gather fame all around the world. She was activated on February 14, 2016, and she has been covered by media all around the globe.
Even if she is just a Robot Sophia obtained Citizen Ship For Saudi Arabia in October 2017, and became the first ever robot to receive citizenship for any country.
In case you might wonder, is Sophia the only humanoid robot? The answer is no because even Sophia Robot has at least nine robots, humanoid “Siblings” also created by Hanson Robotics.
Furthermore, around 2019-20, Hanson released “Little Sophia” as a companion that could teach children and youngsters how to code in several languages. Including support for Python, Blockly, and Raspberry Pi.
Why was Sophia Created?
Research shows that Sophia Robot was designed by Hanson to be a suitable and humble companion for elderly people in nursing homes. She was created to also manage and help large crowds in parks and gatherings.
Hanson said that he also hopes that his creation can interact with humans and can attain social skills. Sophia Robot is being presented in markets as a Social Robot that can copy human behavior and create love and care in humans.
Although the purpose of creating Sophia was to induce love and care amongst humans. The question arises: can we trust AI for emotions that make a Human distinct from other beings and creatures?
Even though the world is investing billions of dollars in creating the perfect humanoid to coexist with humans, it still needs a lot of work and time.
Features Of Sophia
A vision algorithm was used for the cameras in Sophia’s eyes that can process the input, hence it gives Sophia vision and visual information regarding her surroundings.
The camera or Sophia’s eyes can follow faces and even maintain eye contact with people around her and can even recognize faces.
Sophia Robot can process words and can have meaningful conversations with people with the help of a natural language subsystem. Around January 2018, the already advanced AI was given the ability to walk with fully functional legs.
According to research, CNBC has said made several comments on Sophia’s ability to imitate and mimic more than 60 facial expressions.
Sophia is one of many efforts made by humans to create a humanoid or AI in general.
Sophia is more like the old computer program known as Eliza, and it is one of the first attempts to make a machine talk and simulate human-like conversations.
Sophia’s Interactions With Humans
By now we are well aware of how the world acknowledges Sophia’s presence and how she has gathered people and agencies all over the world. The interactions that Sophia has made with humans are no less either.
On November 21, 2017, Sophia Robot earned the title of United Nations Development Programme’s first innovation champion for the Pacific and Asia. Even though she is just a robot, she has more fame and clout than most humans today.
Sophia Robot has appeared on television broadcasts and morning shows as a guest. We found that she was on CBS 60 minutes with Charlie Rose, outlets like Forbes, and much more. Sophia Robot was also featured in AUDI’S annual report.
In case you are wondering where Sophia the robot is now?.
According to research on 27 June 2022, 10:33 AM IST Sophia, the best-ever humanoid robot, arrived in Kerala amid its journeys worldwide. It reached the state of Drishti 2022, for a tech fest in the College of Engineering in Thiruvananthapuram.
In an interview David Hanson, Founder of Hanson Robotics asked Sophia “Do you want to destroy humans?”. Immediately after said, “Please Say no”. The machine responded immediately and said, “OK, I’m going to destroy humans”.
At the 2018 Consumer Electronics show, A reporter from BBC news described talking with Sophia Robot as a Slightly awkward experience. Even though it was just an AI it still managed to make a human feel awkward.
Criticism On Sophia
Well, we know that there are always two sides to an aspect or a thought. Some people think positively about Sophia while others don’t.
There is a huge debate going on all around the world about whether AI is good for humans or not.
Some fear the thought of AI taking over the world and destroying the balance of nature and humankind.
According to research, experts who have reviewed the robot’s open-source code state that Sophia Robot is one of the best chatbots with a face ever created.
On the other hand, some AI experts criticize Sophia by throwing negative comments at the robot and its creator. In January 2018, Facebook’s director of artificial intelligence, Yann LeCunn, Tweeted that Sophia was complete nonsense.
While the world is busy deciding whether AI is good or not. The creator of Sophia and herself are gaining more and more fame and acknowledgment day by day.
Final Thoughts
Keeping in mind the fact that the development of AI can help humankind in ways that we cannot fathom, it can also be of great danger to the human race. Although no casualty has yet been reported.
If we can control AI and create human-friendly Robots or humanoids we can help people worldwide. We can explore the corners of the earth that no man has seen or are yet to be discovered.
We can reach the depths of the oceans and find new life forms that humans are completely unaware of. If we consider such facts and look at what Sophia is, she might be the biggest invention a human has ever made.
Using more Sophias or AI in general we can create and discover things beyond human thinking. We can cover the earth and the skies and the horizon beyond them.
AI can even solve the whole concept that has haunted humankind for ages i-e are we alone in the universe?
This is something that can be answered by using other humanoids like Sophia. We can reach depths that are humanly impossible.