Sure, LG’s new home assistant robot lacks a good or even easily digestible name, but we’ll give extra points to LG’s smart home Artificial Intelligence (AI) agent for its cuteness.
The new robot, which will be unveiled at CES 2024 (January 9-12), is a small cog in LG’s new efforts to create “Jobless Homes.” The mostly white robot, about 1 foot tall, balances on two foot-shaped wheels and features a friendly face with two large video “eyes.” Below is a fixed “mouth” that is actually a series of cameras and sensors. There’s also a nice wide handle so you can pick up the LG robot if, we assume, it gets in your way.
Its warm demeanor aside, the smart home AI agent is packed with technology, most of it based on Qualcomm’s Robotics RB5 development kit, which is based on Qualcomm’s QRB516. The SoC offers a host of pre-built AI capabilities, such as facial recognition and the ability to capture a wide range of environmental data, including air quality, humidity and temperature.
“Our innovative smart home AI agent combines cutting-edge autonomous mobility and AI technologies with advanced communication capabilities and services to help customers free themselves from household chores,” Lyu Jae-cheol said in a statement about the new robot
LG designed the robot to be whatever home helper you need, so it can serve as a home security system, roaming the hallways and looking for intruders (and reporting them directly to your smartphone). It can help you prepare for your day by giving you weather updates or reminding you of your schedule.
It can connect to your smart home system and manage connected plugs and switches (it would be nice if a robot could run around my house turning off all the lights people leave on).
The robot can also be quite nice, greeting you when you get home and even identifying your mood (based on the frowning face you’re making at the moment, for example) and then playing music that might cheer you up.
One of the robot images provided shows the smart home’s AI agent lurking near a small child (who looks quite entertaining), but there are no details on how it might interact with children. Would his video eyes transform into a cartoon playback screen or show a game appropriate for young children? Likewise, LG did not specify battery life or how the robot could be charged.
Considering LG doesn’t have a decent name for the robot, it’s no surprise that we don’t have pricing or an availability date. Still, I bet most people wouldn’t mind hanging out with this ultra-cute robot when it’s available.
Take a look at our CES 2024 hub for the latest show news as it happens. We’ll cover everything from 8K TVs and foldable screens to new phones, laptops, smart home devices and the latest in artificial intelligence, so stay with us for the big stories.
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