Philips has launched a device, ‘The Smart Companion’, that owners can enjoy dialogue with as well as order to perform tasks. Part of their ‘Home Dialogue System’ (HDS), the companion can respond to voice commands to display photos, search the Internet and recognize different faces. Ideally, ‘Dimi’ will be networked to a household’s computer, enabling information gleaned from the Internet to be communicated in a quick and friendly way.

The robot has been given a simplified human-like shape, with a flexible ‘head’ unit that can nod in response to requests. Much of Dimi’s body is covered with light panels, meaning emotional responses can be conveyed by the use of different shades. ‘Because the Smart Companion is so humanlike, users feel they are dealing with a friend - a living assistant. As trust and ease grow, interacting with the Smart Companion becomes an ever more pleasurable experience’.