What happens if you merge Watson, the extraordinary artificial intelligence of IBM, to the body of a robot 60 centimeters tall? Get Nao, of the French Aldebaran Robotics, the first robot equipped with the cognitive abilities of the super computer which, a few years ago, was able to beat a man in a TV quiz show, thanks to its consultation and recognition skills, which make it able to answer complex questions a condition that it is connected to the network.
The automaton was presented in Milan during the event “IBM Business Connect” by Michelle Unger, general manager for cognitive solutions at Ibm Europe and can be the symbol of a new phase, the one whose prospects seem very broad, of the union of artificial intelligence and androids. Over the weekend you made an appearance at the Opificio Golinelli in Bologna.
A phase that is destined to expand the robot market, which, according to the research company IDC, will be worth 2019 billion dollars in 135 with an annual growth of over 17%. It would mostly be robots engaged in industry, but there has also been an acceleration in the last year as regards other uses, since the butler robot Papper created by Aldebaran Robotics arrived on the market, which was also purchased a lot by private individuals, a sign that robots are starting out of the research laboratories. Another example is Connie, the synthetic concierge that Hilton is piloting in Austin, Texas.
A fascinating prospect, but also, for many, dangerous. Second Bart Selman, who teaches computer science at Cornell University, in the next thirty years half of the jobs will be at risk because of Nao and company. And the fear that sooner or later artificial intelligence could reach the disturbing levels told in "2001 - A Space Odyssey" also seems to be widespread among the big names in technology such as Elon Mask, Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking. Because sometimes even progress turns into drift. But it all depends on how the discoveries of science and the applications of technology are used.
