The Care-bot GR-3 is described on Fourier's site as follows:
This full-size "Care-bot" is designed for interactive companion. Its soft-touch outer shell and multimodal emotional interaction system bring the concept of "warm tech companionship" to life.
If the first thing that popped into your head was Baymax, the company's copy editors got it right. Among the promotional videos for the newly released humanoid robot is this one, in which a teen describes her ideal robot. She describes her ideal companion as being like a robot cat. With its expressive eyes and soft belly, the GR-3 fits the bill. The cat in the video shows no interest in playing with the cat toy proffered by the robot, however.
Other videos ask the same question of an art museum curator and a mechanical engineer, both of whom extol the virtues of the GR-3 for their purposes. Pricing for the mini Baymax is not listed, but an unconfirmed report on a robotics forum puts the price at $120,000 plus tariffs. While this is certainly a little steep for a robot cat, Fourier plans to add "assistive care" features to the GR-3 in the future, opening up its use in healthcare or elder care.
Previously:
• The amazing, shitty robots of Simone Giertz
• Factory robot convinces 12 other robots to go on strike
• Modding Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
• Here's why we don't have robot butlers yet
