Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says Apple is investigating the possibility of developing personal robots.
Apple has apparently researched a mobile robot that can follow users around their home. In addition, they have developed an advanced device that can move a screen autonomously.
Although these plans are still in their early stages and the devices may never come to fruition, Gurman notes Apple is under pressure to find new sources of revenue growth after it abandoned its self-driving car project.
Additionally, the Vision Pro riflescope doesn’t appear to be a bestseller due to its high starting price of around $3,500.
According to the report, the robotics projects will be led by Apple’s hardware engineering division and its artificial intelligence and machine learning group.
It is said that the robot with a screen is significantly more advanced in its development than the mobile robot. The screen would be able to mimic a person’s movements during a FaceTime call, such as shaking their head or nodding. It would also be able to focus on a specific person in a crowd during a call, so the screen would always be focused on them.
The original idea for the home robot was a video conferencing device that could independently navigate through a room.
