SXSW 2018: Comfort Robots Steal Show Floor
Last Updated on October 2, 2023 4:24 pm by Jeffrey Powers
Meet Chappet, the talking yellow button with a voice babies must love.
It can be affixed to any object and allows you to communicate remotely, or it can communicate for you. When sensing a baby is crying, Chappet will start playing lullabies to soothe it, and parents can talk to the baby through the iOS and Android app.
Black Mirror applications include spooking friends at a party or bugging a meeting in states where wiretapping is legal. Battery life is 1.2 hours and the app is compatible with iOS 9.0 and Android 55.0+. Available on Amazon for $54.99. I have yet to try the one the company gave me but was able to get this demo at the booth:
Japan-based comfortbot, Qoobo, the pillow with a tail, was also on the show floor, featured here playing with Sony’s robot dog, Aibo.
Qoobo with Sony’s Aibo, photo credit: Qoobo
Geekazine fell in love with Qoobo at CES and has been following its road to market. “Qoobo is currently available for sale on Qoobo.com for $92, with delivery scheduled for September,” said CEO Shunsuke Aoki.
Other show floor attractions included Rotanza, the dancing robot:
This language robot which had a pretty long line:
And this prize wheel sponsored by GoHappy, a social app for planning gatherings. They were giving away Goat Yoga and other adventures. I won a $25 gift card that I didn’t get to use, and never made it to the goats, but the promise of it all made me happy.
Hidden in a corner was a Nordic creperie giving away free crepes, and Anheuser-Busch had an Escape Room during the Job Fair.
With so much going on at SXSW, it was surprising to see so much activity on the show floor, but it was a great diversion to the panels, parties and performances.