Conditions for robots to permeate society in 2022 Realization of true “superhuman sports” is almost here! Part 1
Pepper, which moves like a human, is probably the most familiar robot to Japanese people. He is in charge of the reception at a conveyor belt sushi chain. Robots are becoming a familiar part of our lives, and while it goes without saying that many people are involved in the creation of a single robot, Naoki Mima, president of Pulsebots Inc., is becoming an indispensable presence in the development of robots. Mr. In addition to the company, Mr. Mima founded Heidi Interface Co., Ltd., which develops apparel brands and fan club apps for big artists, and is currently active as a director and CXO. Mr. Mima created the sleep support robot "Nemof" which became a hot topic. When we sold a limited number of 100 units through crowdfunding, they were sold out in 14 hours. A new version of the Nemov is scheduled to be released this year. How will robots evolve in the future? HERO X editor-in-chief Yukisato Sugihara listens to the story.
What is necessary for social robots to permeate the world
Sugihara: Thank you for your time today. I believe Mima-san runs various companies, and this time she would like to ask about Parsbots. What kind of things does this company do?
Mima: Yes, we are currently developing and selling two main products: IFRO, a service that makes it easy to create chatbots, and Nemov, a sleep support robot.
Sugihara: What I found very interesting was how to give this robot a social aspect. When it comes to sociality in robots, what kind of concrete image should I have? "Is this going to happen from the new model that will be released in 2022?"
Mima: When I met a robot for the first time, how could I become friends with this robot? I thought. At that time, I came to the conclusion that unless the robot itself has sociality, it would not be possible to get along with it.
When people trust someone and try to get along, if that person only has a relationship with themselves, there is no way to trust them. In the first place, I think that trust can only be established when there is a social aspect. That's why I think it's necessary for robots to become members of society, and I want to make that happen.
Sugihara: I see. I also do a lot of things related to robots, but isn't it extremely difficult to define the word "robot"? Each person has a completely different impression of the word "robot". Social implementation has started in various places, but I think we are in a transitional period.
From now on, I think that robots will become more and more consumer-oriented, and more to the point, they will come closer to the world view of Doraemon, which we saw in the world of manga.
Mr. Mima said earlier that "sociality is necessary", but one approach would be to increase the level of trust with the robot, for example, by maintaining close communication. mosquito?
Mima: Well, the very first service we created was called Pulsebots, and we created a robot SNS that connects robots and gives them a semi-social feel. is.
That is, in the dialogue between the owner and the robot, there is a flow in which the robot and the owner become intimate, and when the degree of intimacy increases, the owner can make another owner's robot a friend. That's what it means.
In the concept movie released on YouTube by Parsbots Inc., a scene appears as if Nemov and his friends are having a water well meeting.
Mima: We created a virtual place on the Internet like an SNS, and robots became friends there and started talking to each other.
Sugihara: What kind of conversations do you have?
Mima: The robot tweets what it has talked to the owner on a pseudo-SNS. For example, if you mutter something like, "My owner said something like this the other day," your friend's robot will mutter, "That's interesting," and your friend's robot will tell its owner, It seems that there was a conversation. I was doing service first.
As an experience, it is very interesting, and as robots are implemented in society, communication between these robots is absolutely necessary, and through this experiment, robots understand themselves. I thought that such a feeling is also born on the side of people.
Sugihara: After that, did you start as a business?
Mima: Well, it didn't work out that way. I don't think there was anything wrong with the concept or the experience, but unfortunately, robots didn't spread that far. When I created the concept, I thought that this momentum would lead us to an era where every household has a communication robot, and even one communication robot for each person, but it didn't turn out that way, and it hit a dead end. . I'd like to get there eventually, but for now I'm thinking of committing to expanding the robots a little more.
Dare to lower the hurdles as a robot with loose cuteness
Includes 16 original stories that invite sleep. It seems to be appreciated as a present for children.
Sugihara: Meanwhile, Nemov was developed. It looks so cute.
Mima: Yes. While doing various things with Parsbots, I thought that I would like to make some kind of robot myself, so I made Nemov. When I was making a humanoid robot, one of the reactions of the customer was that it didn't really work as a conversation. On the other hand, in the case of Nemov, this appearance is nothing but eyes. I don't even know where the mouth is. It doesn't look smart, so is it really talking? The expected value naturally goes down.
Sugihara: I see.
Mima: This is a robot that I made assuming that it will be placed by the bedside and used, and as a function, it will tell you the approximate time in 5 minute increments when touched, an alarm function, and music box music. It's about letting it flow and telling stories.
Sugihara: In the past, I used to throw the alarm because I didn't like the sound of the alarm.
Mima: Among the many communication robots that have come out, there was something that I thought was an issue. It's hard to get high, and in the end, most people stop communicating.
Sugihara: Nemov isn't even humanoid to begin with, so even if he can't communicate like a human, he doesn't feel out of place.
Mima: Yes. Also, I think it is quite important to be able to create a place for the robot. In the case of Nemov, I was able to set a place for him to be at his bedside, so I was able to clearly define his role.
Toward a robot that refines its characteristics and contributes to society
Sugihara: There is a movie that came to mind when I heard Mima-san's story. , do you know?
Mima: I don't know.
Sugihara: Through deep learning, robots are able to think in a right-brained way. let it go Then, the relationship with the owner and what kind of communication language will be used will change. After that, robots will become more like humans, and the time will come when robot human rights will be discussed, and many other things will happen. I think the world is becoming more realistic.
Mima: I think we still have a lot of work to do before we reach that point. Because there are not many things in the world that have realized such a form as an experience yet.
Sugihara: Then, what steps do you think communication robots will take next?
Mima: As a communication robot, there are actually things like Google Assistant already in the world. However, because it has no substance, people do not recognize it as a robot. I don't think there is. When it comes to robots that are the most popular in the world, it's the cleaning robot Roomba.
Sugihara: If the Roomba was in the shape of a person, people might not buy it.
Mima: Yes (laughs). I think we are now at the stage where we are evolving to specialize in each role. Arm robots used in factories have one arm and specialize in arm and hand functions, and smart speakers specialize in ears. Specialized parts mature and eventually get integrated. After that, I think that communication robots will become commonplace in the world.
Sugihara: In the future, for example, will it be possible to measure biological reactions, and will we be able to communicate using data that can be used to understand the state of health and measure the state of mind? ?
Mima: Right. I am sure it will come.
Naoki Mima Founded Parsbots Co., Ltd., a robot specialist company in 2015, and has been involved in the development of communications for robots from major manufacturers, the sleep robot "Nemof", and the communication AI creation service "IFRO". Handle. ASTRSK UX designer/producer. Founding President and current Director CXO of Heidi Interface Co., Ltd. He also serves as CXO of Time Leap Co., Ltd.
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