A Robot That Laughs (and Can Cry If You Want)

The Gartner research institute has recently announced a list of top technologies for 2019; in Japan, a robot has been developed that can mimic human emotions on its face. One of the aspects that can make robots more appealing to humans is their ability to imitate human emotions. Now, engineers in Japan have managed to design a robot that can somewhat imitate human emotions using artificial intelligence and a series of specific numerical codes. A research team at Osaka University is working on this project and has succeeded in simulating some human emotions on the face of a humanoid robot named 'Afto.' A few years ago, an attempt was made to create emotional states in this robot's prototype, but it was not very successful. This task is very challenging because moving the artificial skin on the robot's face and adjusting its performance is quite difficult. To solve this problem, many movement points have been placed on the face so that, based on artificial intelligence and numerical analyses, the movement of the skin appears more natural, mimicking human emotions through lip and eye movements. Although researchers consider this robot a step forward, the facial movements still seem very artificial. The Gartner research institute has named self-driving vehicles, automated electronic devices, artificial intelligence, machine learning-based analytics, digital twinning, blockchain, and quantum computing as the top technologies expected to attract the most focus from researchers in the coming year. Among these, it seems that blockchain, which is closely associated with cryptocurrencies, will grow the most. Quantum computers will also change the future of technology. With faster processing, the high computational power for artificial intelligence becomes more feasible, allowing machine learning to advance significantly. The Chinese company Xiaomi made about $1.5 billion in net profit in the first nine months of 2018. This company is growing in markets like China, India, and developing countries. Its phones are cheaper than many global competitors and have good performance, which is why they are penetrating the markets of developing countries. A report from the IDC research institute states that Xiaomi, along with two other phone manufacturers, 'Oppo' and 'Vivo,' has managed to capture 25% of the global mobile market. In India, the Redmi series phones from Xiaomi have received a lot of attention, allowing Xiaomi to capture a significant portion of the Indian market. The company has also penetrated the European market, with Russia and Spain welcoming its products. Recently, Xiaomi has started selling the Mi 8 Pro in the UK market. The Iranian state broadcaster, IRIB, is 'hindering mobile development in Iran.' According to ISNA, Hossein Fallah Jooshghani, the head of the Communications Regulatory Authority, discussed the frequency band held by IRIB, stating that due to the digitization of public broadcasting networks worldwide, part of the 700 and 800 MHz frequency band, previously used for analog public broadcasting, has now been freed and is designated for mobile and cellular development based on international regulations and agreements made in various countries. He emphasized the necessity of freeing this frequency band, which was previously used for analog broadcasting, stating that despite it being unused, IRIB unfortunately does not release it for mobile network development, a matter referred to the Supreme Council of Cyberspace.