“Calvin, take me for a walk”: when AI transforms the robot into a personal assistant
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The humanoid robot Calvin, presented on June 6 by Wandercraft and Renault. WANDERCRAFT/RENAULT
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Series: Will our homes soon be populated by machines capable of cleaning, educating our children, and keeping us company? Advances in artificial intelligence are ushering in a new era of robotics. An illustration of this is Calvin, the unique humanoid unveiled by Wandercraft and Renault.
"Calvin, there's a pile of tires. Take the top tire and place it on the conveyor belt." In a room that replicates the decor of an auto workshop, the robot responds in English in a deep voice: "Okay, I'll take and place this tire," before carrying out the order with heavy steps. Unveiled this Friday, June 6, Calvin—a prototype of which we saw in a video—is expected to cause a sensation in the robotics world. With its massive body, its seat-shaped pelvis, its arms extended by discs, and its lack of a head, the machine lacks the glamour of American or Chinese humanoids, which run marathons or perform acrobatics . This is because this robot, made in France, targets two types of applications that may seem far removed, but require the same robustness: handling heavy loads in the industrial world, and home assistance for people with mobility problems.
This unique tricolor humanoid is the result of an unexpected partnership between small medical exoskeleton manufacturer Wandercraft and automotive giant Renault Group, which is taking a minority stake in its capital. For Jean-Louis Constanza, who co-founded Wandercraft in 2012 with Nicolas Simon and Matthieu Masselin, developing this machine isn't a diversification, but an extension of his mission: to help…
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