A Russian robotics company has offered $200,000 to an individual willing to relinquish their face and voice permanently. This unusual proposition is part of Promobot’s ambitious plans to create a new generation of hyper-realistic humanoid robots.
Promobot, a company renowned for its advanced humanoid robots, is pushing the boundaries of robotics with its latest project. Since its inception in 2019, the company has gained recognition for its ability to produce robots that closely mimic human appearance and behavior. The latest endeavor involves developing a sophisticated humanoid robot-assistant designed for use in hotels, shopping malls, and other busy environments.
“Our company is developing technologies in the field of facial recognition, as well as speech, autonomous navigational artificial intelligence, and other areas of robotics,” reads an official Promobot statement. “Since 2019, we have been actively manufacturing and supplying humanoid robots to the market. Our new clients want to launch a large-scale project, and as for this, they need to license a new robot appearance to avoid legal delays.”
According to Aleksei Iuzhakov, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Promobot, this initiative aims to offer clients customizable robots with personalized features. “We want to ensure that anyone can order a robot that mirrors any appearance for both professional and personal use,” Iuzhakov stated when the project was first announced.
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A $200,000 Offer for a Unique Opportunity
To facilitate this project, Promobot is on the lookout for an individual who will become the face and voice of the new robot. The company has announced it is willing to pay $200,000 to the chosen candidate in exchange for the perpetual rights to their likeness. The ideal applicant should have a “kind and friendly” appearance, though age and gender are not considered factors.
The chosen individual’s face will be used to create a 3D model, while their voice will be recorded for approximately 100 hours to provide audio material for the robot’s speech capabilities. This robot is expected to start operating in 2023, primarily serving clients across North America and the Middle East.
Promobot’s announcement has generated significant interest, leading to over 20,000 applications within a short period. However, due to the overwhelming response, the company has temporarily halted the application process. An update on their website thanked all participants and mentioned that the application collection had been suspended.
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“The Promobot company wants to say thanks to everyone who responded to participation in the project. Today we have received over 20,000 applications and our client has decided to suspend the request collection.. Those who didn’t have time to submit an application, please no worries, we are having more projects upcoming . Subscribe to our Instagram and stay tuned.” explained an update on the Promobot website.
The company’s decision to pause the application process highlights the project’s high demand and the intriguing nature of this offer. Despite the excitement, details about the project, including the eventual winner’s identity and specific uses of their likeness, remain somewhat ambiguous.
Promobot’s innovative approach reflects broader trends in robotics and artificial intelligence. The company’s focus on developing advanced facial recognition, speech processing, and autonomous navigation technologies underscores a growing trend toward more personalized and interactive robots.
The development of such robots is anticipated to transform customer service and interaction in various sectors. By incorporating a human-like appearance and voice, these robots aim to provide a more engaging and relatable experience for users.
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However, the ethical implications of using someone’s face and voice indefinitely raise important questions. The legal agreements associated with this offer will likely address concerns about the extent of usage rights and any restrictions on the individual’s ability to use their likeness in other contexts.
“Imagine a replica of Michael Jordan selling basketball uniforms and William Shakespeare reading his own texts in a museum,” says Aleksei Iuzhakov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Promobot. “We can build a linguistic model based on popular phrases of a particular person – the robot will communicate and answer questions by analyzing frequent expressions of the ‘original’ and using a certain context of knowledge of this person.”
