Cristina Hodgson
A HUMANOID is serving beers and coffees in the hub of Pamplona.
Her name is Alexia, and she is the newest addition to a bar in the Plaza del Castillo.
At 1.60m tall and 80kg in weight, this is a humanoid still in the process of being perfected, but with facial recognition software to identify customers and an in-built navigation system so she can negotiate her way around a crowded room, Alexia is the talk of the plaza.
This robot helps to serve drinks. The barman places the client’s order on Alexia’s tray and the humanoid carries the order to the table.
For added novelty she can also sing happy birthday to you, play music and converse with the clients.
Robot sales have been increasing over the past few years, but they’re still a relatively rare sight, however the coronavirus crisis has increased public interest in robotic technologies and artificial intelligence is now seen as an effective resource in combating the pandemic.
This humanoid, which also recognises voice commands and facial recognition, can be bought or rented through the company Cocuus. Its purchase price is between €4,000 and €8,000 euros and the rental price is about €250.
Another Spanish bar which uses artificial intelligence can be found in Sevilla. There a bar owner has installed a robotic arm which can pour 600 cañas per hour.
Alexia may be the talk of the plaza, but it’s not all positive criticism. Most clients have admitted that they prefer being served by a ‘human’ waiter and with unemployment on the rise, creating jobs is fundamental instead of ‘substituting them with artificial intelligence.’
Is this the future?
5 ways robots are helping in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic
- Inside some hospitals, robots are being deployed for disinfection.
- Robots deliver medicines, blood tests, food and help with hospital logistics in general.
- In Spain, ABB robots have been reprogrammed by Nagami Design to produce masks.
- In Andalucia, the Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technologies, FADA-CATEC and Airvant are designing an aerial robot to disinfect logistics areas.
- In Germany, a Pepper robot was used in a supermarket to remind people about complying with social distancing rules.
In fact, the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the European Commission to launch an initiative to collect ideas about deployable Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics solutions that could help face the ongoing crisis.
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