🤖 Should robots look like humans?
I've been researching AI and robotics and started wondering: why is there such a drive to build robots that look and act like humans?
Why won't the best robots look and act like a blend of creatures, say an octopus blended with a centipede and an ant?
Is the shape of the human form and its physical capabilities really the best 'model' to imitate and develop?
Figure is an AI Robotics company building the world's first commercially viable autonomous humanoid robot.
The goal of Figure is to develop "general-purpose humanoids that can eliminate the need for unsafe and undesirable jobs".
Figure's theory about why it is best to build humanoid robots is interesting.
"We could have either millions of different types of robots serving unique tasks or one humanoid robot with a general interface, serving millions of tasks. At Figure, we believe general-purpose humanoid robots built for a human environment are the desired route to have the largest overall impact. For that reason, our humanoid robots resemble the human body in shape—two legs, two arms, hands, and a screen for a face. With one product, we can meet the complex human environment with human-like capabilities and provide endless types of support across a variety of circumstances."
What do you think? Are they right? Should robots look and 'act' like humans?
On the same level as 'spatial intelligence' a new level of 'guidance' or 'environmental' intelligence will be required. This would have to be tied to the types of sensors and cameras would be incorporated for an AI driven robot to apply the 'spatial intelligence' for movement free and independent of their 'human controller.' This would be beyond current GPS style guidance used in vehicles or equipment with cameras. Navigating a multi-storied building or rooms is not the same as driving fields or roads. Then imagine applying this AI to actual vehicles and equipment who are not humanoid.