Switched has a new home! Huffpost Tech.

Click here to visit the new home of Switched!

Hot on HuffPost Tech:

See More Stories
AOL Tech

AIMEC Robo-Kid Keeps Childless Couple Company, Tells Jokes

by Caleb Johnson on August 16, 2010 at 08:30 AM

AIMEC robot A U.K. inventor has developed a 4-foot-tall plastic robot child for he and his wife that, believe it or not, is creepier than Haley Joel Osment in 'Artificial Intelligence: AI' (way to be redundant, Spielberg). According to The Daily Mail, Tony Ellis and his wife, Judie, don't have any kids or pets, but they do operate a toy robotics company called Conceptioneering (which is almost as bad of a name as 'Artificial Intelligence: AI'). So Tony created the Artificially Intelligent Mechanical Electronic Companion (or AIMEC, for short) as company. The bot has advanced voice-recognition capabilities and can roll around the house without bumping into walls or furniture, thanks to a lone digital 'eye.' AIMEC connects wirelessly to the Internet and searches for conversation starters in news, trends and pop culture. The smart bot also remembers what music and TV shows his dad inventor likes and will recommend a song or tell him when a program is about to begin, or will lighten the mood with a corny joke or impersonation.

Go ahead, smile over this cute story of human and robot companionship for now. But Tony is working on a 4th AIMEC prototype and plans to release the bot to consumers once he finds a manufacturer. Then we'll be one step closer to the robotic revolution all those sci-fi books and movies have warned us about. "AIMEC does seem to have a life of its own sometimes," Judie told The Daily Mail. Have the movies taught us nothing? [From: The Daily Mail and AiDreams]

Tags: ai, aimec, ArtificialIntelligence, conceptioneering, invention, research, robot, robotics, Robots, top, toys

HuffPost AOL Social News Most Popular