Apple research lamp shows expressive motion makes robots more engaging

Apple published research on a non-humanoid robot shaped like a desk lamp, whose shade acts as a head and arm as a neck, answering questions in Siri's voice. The researchers argue that robot movement should blend expressive cues such as attention, intention and emotion with purely functional goals. In demonstrations, a lamp that glances towards a window before answering a weather question felt more relatable than one that simply replied. The work, which TechCrunch linked to Apple's reported home robotics ambitions, adds to evidence that body language matters even for robots that look nothing like people.

Source: TechCrunch