Business Tech

A Great Potential for Helping Humans

The word “robot” was originally created by Czech science fiction writer Karel Čapek, who envisioned artificial people someday working alongside real people. Today, however, “robot” is a universal term for both physical machines and also for software. Although they have the potential to aid real people, one sticking point has been human-robot interaction and human trust. Geppetto Avatars is a company that is pioneering efforts in this field.

Norrie J. Daroga, CEO of Geppetto Avatars, Inc., credited the company's technology as a way for people to have meaningful interactions and conversations with machines that could improve their lives. Although this technology, first developed at Geppetto Labs and later assisted by Avatar Ventures, Inc., the combination of which formed Geppetto Avatars, could have potential applications in education, financial services and even in the entertainment industry, right now the company is focusing on the world of health care.

“There are a number of situations where the avatar is able to have a conversation and observe your behavior, or listen to your concerns when a doctor or a nurse is not available,” Daroga told The Suit Magazine. “The typical application (could be) patient engagement, where you want to know information about a particular drug, or (when) you are concerned about something you observe on your body and want to see a doctor.”

The application is far more interactive than a mere online form or questionnaire by providing a graphical representation of a helper – an avatar – that could go through question and answer scenarios with a potential patient. Based on the information provided, the avatar could have the ability to do pre-screening or collect enormous amounts of information about the patient for the doctor, thus saving a doctor's time. Daroga added that this technology, when integrated with a camera, will allow users to take pictures if necessary.

From this interaction, “your doctor can let you know if you have a serious problem or something that can wait for a week,” Daroga suggested.

On the surface, this technology might have the feel of science fiction from Čapek or even Star Trek but it is something that Geppetto Avatars Inc. has been working on since the company was founded just over a year ago. Daroga, along with co-founder Mark Steven Meadows, who previously worked in the labs where Apple's Siri was developed, set out to make their vision a reality. Although the company only wrote its first line of code this past January, its technology will debut this fall.

“In early September we plan to have MVP (minimal viable product) launched with a client who will be using it for eldercare,” said Daroga. “That is a pretty dramatic leap and series of advances in six months.”

While there is a five year plan – and Geppetto Avatars Inc. continues to raise seed money – Daroga noted that it was launched simply with investment from friends and family. The MVP is thus a crucial next step for the company.

“We are in conversation with different venture capital firms,” Daroga noted. “Getting the product out will help us a lot so that people will be able to see where it is working.”

One hurdle in the medical world is that clinical studies take time, while this technology continues evolving at “warp speed.” However, the firm has developed Sophie, the first interactive software robot designed to interact with human patients and she could have an advantage over other, similar technologies.

“She is able to conduct 10,000 interviews in an hour, as opposed to one interview in four hours,” said Daroga, sounding much like a proud parent. Sophie can also be finely tuned to discuss all sorts of medical conditions and “her” software is programmed to work like a doctor thinks, according to a recent commentary on Fox News introducing Sophie.

“The avatars will have expertise in different chronic diseases; there will be a robot for diabetes, asthma and psoriasis,” he explained. “So essentially, the avatar only needs to know about a particular type of expertise.”

Moreover Sophie isn't just a pretty face acting as the front for an input device. She can actually react to the emotions of the user. This means that Sophie won't necessarily be limited to only diagnosing conditions, as her bedside manner could be adjusted to encompass other applications.

“The more interesting application is that the avatar has the ability to sense your emotions and it uses both your words and your tone. And, in a few months, it will be able to observe your facial expressions,” said Daroga. “It converts this into sentiment and one of its uses in connection with that is eldercare. There are over 60 million people taking care of family members in this country.”

Because Sophie is software based, she can also be changed to meet each client's needs – and doesn't even need to be a she!

“It is software, so you don't need to have a physical presence and you can have many different characteristics built into it. You can have people of different color, male or female, and you could have characteristics you desire – that you empathize with and trust,” added Daroga.

The next step may be to take the software and integrate it with robotic hardware. One of the investors interested in Geppetto Avatars is a robotics firm, and after the September launch, Daroga said he hopes that the robotic industry will take notice.

In showing us his vision of the future, Daroga asks, “Can you imagine if a physical robot could engage with you?”

For more information, visit: www.geppettoavatars.com






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