Creepy meets cool in humanoid robots at CES 2022 show

tech.hindustantimes.com:

A lifelike, child-size doll writhed and cried before slightly shocked onlookers snapping smartphone pictures Wednesday at the CES 2022 show -- where the line between cool and slightly disturbing robots can be thin.

"Oh! The eyes are very scary," said Marcelo Humerez, an exhibitor from Peru who happened upon the Pedia-Roid, which is designed for medical training, as its eyes went white.

But just a few stands away, a humanoid named Ameca got a decidedly different reception, as it chatted with a curious crowd that marveled at its ability to make a range of stunningly person-like gestures.

"Whoa, robot! I didn't expect that when I turned the corner," said Ricky Rivera, an exhibitor with Canada-based tech company Geotab. "But it looks amazing and it tracked me right away."

Both reactions were, in some ways, exactly what the makers had been aiming for.

Morgan Roe from Britain-based Engineered Arts said the firm created software and technology to make Ameca person-like -- though there are limits to how realistic it can be.

"We've designed Ameca to be as human-like as possible in movement," he told AFP while standing next to the robot, whose gray face moved and blinked as he spoke.

"Humans are so complex, so making a robot exactly like a human is almost impossible," he added. "But if we did that, then you wouldn't be scared of it because you would just assume it was a human."

Just before perfection, though, is a creation that is off in ways that reveal it isn't a living being -- it's a concept called "the uncanny valley."

"It doesn't quite move like a human, it doesn't quite express itself or emote or talk like a human. That's the uncanny valley, that's the scary bit," said Roe.

Yet the slightly frightening aspect of the Pedia-Roid robot