robotics

Dr. Cynthia Breazeal is an Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT where she founded and directs the Personal Robots Group at the Media Lab.

She is a pioneer of social robotics and Human Robot Interaction. She has authored the book “Designing Sociable Robots”, has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles in journals and conferences on the topics of autonomous robotics, artificial intelligence, human robot interaction, and robot learning.
Dr. Breazeal's research focuses on developing personal robots that are socially intelligent, interact and communicate with people in human-centric terms, work with humans as peers, and learn from people as an apprentice. She has developed some of the world’s most famous robotic creatures and is recognized as a prominent young innovator.

She is a recipient of the National Academy of Engineering’s Gilbreth Lecture Award, Technology Review’s TR35 Award, and TIME magazine’s Best Inventions of 2008.

See below the video of the robot Nexi, nominated by TIME magazine as best invention 2008 and read Cynthia Breazeal's complete Lift speaker profile to learn more about her fascinating work.

Robots don't have to look like humans, unless they are exoskeletons. Check this technology out, the video is a bit too marketing oriented, but it is also impressive as it shows paraplegic patients getting back some of their capacity to move. When will the first mainstream version come out - outside of military usage? Millions of people must be rooting for that to come on the market at a reasonable price very soon.

Bruno Bonnell is a legendary french entrepreneur, founder of Infogrames and former CEO of Atari . Today Bruno has launched a new venture in the robotic market: Robopolis. In his speech at Lift Asia 08 "From Robota to Homo Robotus" (with remarkable energy and great performance the morning after a legendary Karaoke Night ;) Bruno revises Asimov's laws of robotic and highlights the differences between the Asian and Western approach to robotics.

More videos on liftconference.com/videos.

I did a short version of Tomoaki Kasuga's speech, leaving only the demos of the SPC-101c robot. Check out all the moves this little guy has, quite frankly amazing:

Check full speech here, and as usual liftconference.com/videos for more talks.

Speecys robotics' Tomoaki Kasuga, a Japanese inventor who has been working on bringing robots to the living rooms of the world for more than fifteen years, showcases his latest creation: a humanoid-shaped robot connected to the Internet. The SPC-101C is part of a whole new botcasting ecosystem (think iTunes for robots) and shows how the expressiveness of movements and the quality of manufacturing are a very important component of human-robot interactions.

More videos on liftconference.com/videos.

Speecys robotics' Tomoaki Kasuga, a Japanese inventor who has been working on bringing robots to the living rooms of the world for more than fifteen years, showcases his latest creation: a humanoid-shaped robot connected to the Internet. The SPC-101C is part of a whole new botcasting ecosystem (think iTunes for robots) and shows how the expressiveness of movements and the quality of manufacturing are a very important component of human-robot interactions.

Bruno Bonnell, founder and former CEO of Infogrames, discusses the implications and opportunities of robotics in the leisure industry.

We're pleased to announce a new speaker: game-industry veteran Bruno Bonnell. Founder and CEO of video game publisher Infogrames Entertainment for 24 years, he recently started a new venture in robotics.

Bruno will give a talk in the "stories session", describing his perspectives and projects about mass-market robotics.

Like last year, we will profile LIFT08 speakers on the conference blog to allow you to know them in advance, and make decisions regarding the presentations you want to attend.

Kevin Warwick: Cyborg and Professor of Cybernetics at Reading University in the UK

Why we invited Kevin
Kevin's research and achievements have been widely recognised and awarded. Last year Daniela Cerqui (Anthropologist) spoke at LIFT about her research and experience at his laboratory in Reading. She has been exploring from an anthropological perspective what has led Kevin to having chips implanted into his body. So this year we invited Kevin to present us with his perspective.

What will he talk about?
Apart from sharing his insights with us from the point of view of a Cyborg and a professor of Cybernetics, Kevin will also talk about how his work is breaking physical, ethical and philosophical boundaries. For more info on Kevin and his activities, check out his biography.

Official Biography
Kevin Warwick is Professor of Cybernetics and carries out research in artificial intelligence, control, robotics and biomedical engineering. He is also Director of the University Knowledge Transfer Centre, which links the University with Small to Medium Enterprises and raises well over £2Million each year in research income for the University or Reading.
See Kevin's LIFT Profile to learn more about this groundbreaking researcher.