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In fiction it is not strange to find the figure of the assistant robot. This is usually a fully self-aware humanoid robot, a type of sapiens robot programmed to collaborate on certain tasks with humans. Some of the best known are\u00a0C-3PO, from Star Wars<\/em><\/a>\u00a0, and\u00a0Baymax, from Big Hero 6<\/em><\/a>\u00a0.<\/p>\n In these stories there is usually a common element: all the characters in the work normally accept this figure. For example, no one feels uncomfortable next to\u00a0Bender in Futurama<\/em><\/a>\u00a0because he is a robot. The integration of robots into society is complete and they are completely accepted. But social approval of a completely autonomous robot adapted to the social environment would not be so easy to achieve in the real world.<\/p>\n Let’s put it in the case that fiction becomes reality and the first completely autonomous robot adapted to the social environment is ready to be inserted in cities. How would it be received by users? What design aspects are key to improving that reception?<\/p>\n A crucial aspect for the proliferation of these robots on a daily basis to be well received is the way we will have to interact with them. Or what is the same,\u00a0the user experience<\/a>\u00a0. In fiction, with Bender or C3PO, communication with automatons barely differs from that established between humans. They completely understand what they are told and, even more importantly, they communicate in a natural way. This implies that you do not have to use any type of interface or artifice to chat with the robot: we simply speak and it captures the message as if it were another person.<\/p>\n This understanding is not that far off in reality. We have probably all used similar technologies: Cortana, Siri and Alexa, the most popular virtual assistants, are capable of verbal communication and maintaining a \u201cconversation\u201d without problems. Now, they have a limitation in their understanding, since they are\u00a0<\/span>programmed to respond to known basic guidelines<\/span><\/a>\u00a0.<\/span><\/p>\n For example, they perfectly interpret messages such as \u201cAlexa turn on the lights in the house\u201d or \u201cSiri, search the internet for the latest song by X artist.\u201d But if we go further, their performance is greatly reduced, or they even stop understanding us.<\/span><\/p>\n This technology, which\u00a0<\/span>has quickly been inserted into homes<\/span><\/a>\u00a0without social rejection, will experience a great advance driven by artificial intelligence. AI makes it possible to design and build models that understand natural language, such as\u00a0<\/span>ChatGPT<\/span><\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/span>Google Gemini<\/span><\/a>\u00a0, apparently capable of understanding us almost perfectly when we ask them questions or simply chat.<\/span><\/p>\n However, today communication with these models takes place through written\u00a0<\/span>chat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0and not voice. Having ChatGpt speak will make communication easier and flow without restrictions of any kind.<\/span><\/p>\n Another key to\u00a0<\/span>human communication is empathy<\/span><\/a>\u00a0. It doesn’t have to be at an advanced level, but the ability, as a conversation develops, to change our message or attitude depending on the reactions the recipient is having makes communication much more natural. For example, if we realize that the message we are giving to someone is affecting them, we can soften it or change the words we use.<\/span><\/p>\n Rosalind Picard, professor and director of a research group at MIT, assures in her book\u00a0<\/span>Affective Computing<\/span><\/em><\/a>\u00a0that to achieve a natural interaction with machines, and for them to be truly intelligent, they would have to be able to recognize and understand feelings, and even show your own feelings.<\/span><\/p>\n This problem is still open, and it is a fairly active branch of research in the field of biometrics, where researchers focus on\u00a0<\/span>trying to recognize emotions through gestures, voice tones and any other information that accompanies words<\/span><\/a>\u00a0.<\/span><\/p>\n Although all this may sound like fantasy, in the real world there are already some social robots operating. And although they do it on a smaller scale than in fiction, they work side by side with people and, little by little, they enter society.<\/span><\/p>\n An example of this is the social robot\u00a0<\/span>Pepper, active to assist children with hearing deficiencies<\/span><\/a>\u00a0. Another is\u00a0<\/span>Stevie, a robot that assisted in a nursing home<\/span><\/a>\u00a0, with very good reception among the residents.<\/span> More photos of @stevietherobot<\/a> from Reflections.Taking a group for musical bingo,dancing,and falling in love.All in a days work for Stevie. pic.twitter.com\/f84Hq89VEB<\/a><\/p>\n — Angela Downing (@Reflectionsw) November 21, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Natural communication<\/h4>\n
When ChatGPT can talk<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Show feelings<\/span><\/h4>\n
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