Apple

Apple ventures into home robots with interactive screen

Apple is reportedly taking steps into the world of home robots, with a personal bot equipped with an interactive screen that moves autonomously throughout the home.

by
Kevin Raposo
April 5, 2024

Image: KnowTechie

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According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly taking steps into an entirely new dimension – home robots.

This project, which is only in its initial stages, aims to create a personal bot equipped with an interactive screen that moves autonomously throughout the home.

Now, this doesn’t sound simple. Folks at Apple are said to still be figuring out how to make the screen/head of the robot work, especially when it uses FaceTime or how it recognizes people.

If it works out finally, Apple’s robot will join the likes of other house-cleaning bots like the Roomba from iRobot.

social robots talking to children — Students talked to the ‘Pepper’ robot as if it were a person. Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance via Getty Images

In addition, CNBC reported Apple’s exploration of home robots moving forward following the company’s decision to drop its electric vehicle project.

However, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for the teams. The balance of the display’s weight on the robot’s motor has presented engineering challenges and raised questions about the viability of such features and the price consumers would be willing to pay for them.

Simultaneously, Apple has been rumored to develop its own artificial intelligence technology like ChatGPT, which could give our favorite virtual assistant, Siri, a significant boost.

But let’s say they are building a home robot. Alright, cool—who is going to be able to afford it? Let me remind you: the Vision Pro headset launched with a $4,500 price tag!

Now, imagine how much a home robot will cost.

And if and when you can afford it, what will you do with it other than the usual call your friends over and have them “check this out” situation?

If your thoughts have only gone as far as having it clean your house and do the laundry for you, don’t worry, you’re not alone.

I can only think of cleaning my house and doing the laundry. I can’t be the only one.

As one commenter on Hacker News points out, “the company that builds a robot that can do household chores will be very, very rich.”

The possibilities seem endless as Apple takes its first steps into the world of home robots. But keep in mind that this could very well spell the end if they don’t get this right.

Have any thoughts on this? Drop us a line below in the comments, or carry the discussion to our Twitter or Facebook.

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