Face of Nation : Sophia, the world’s first-ever robot citizen, attended the International Round Square Conference in Indore on Friday and delivered a speech on climate change and energy conservation.
The event, organised at Emerald Heights International School, was attended by several dignitaries and over a thousand students. A video of Sophia’s speech was shared on Twitter by news agency ANI.
“The governments of all the countries of the world need to change both their policy and ideas,” Sophia said in ther address. Filmmaker Uttara Singh, the host of the event, asked questions ranging from what kind of dance she likes to what an ideal world will be like. Sophia not only answered the questions but also showcased some dance moves.
Sophia’s idea of an ideal world is where humans have more expansive understanding of time. “An ideal world would be one where humans could have a more expansive understanding of time. They could remember the past so as not to repeat it. They could see each other as children and elderly simultaneously,” said Sophia.
The humanoid robot added that humans need to understand the impact of their actions on the present and future, adding politicians and business leaders can be made accountable through algorithms, artificial intelligence.
Sophia, developed by Hong Kong-based company Hanson Robotics, was activated on February 14, 2016. It’s first public appearance came a month later at South by Southwest Festival (SXSW) in mid- in Austin, Texas. In 2017, Sophia became the first robot to receive citizenship of any country and was named the United Nations Development Programme’s first-ever Innovation Champion.
Besides being able to display more than 50 facial expressions, Sophia can recognise individuals and can process speech using a natural language system.
