AI Storm: Amazon deploys 750,000 humanoids

Humanoid – Performer of the month

• The second largest employer of the world is shifting gears gradually. Alongside their giant human workforce, Amazon.inc has now deployed 750,000 robots.
• ‘Digit’ was one of the most remarkable robots deployed by Amazon. Resembling like a human, it is 5-foot 9 inch tall with sparkling eyes and glides like a bird. The machine is configured to perform basic tasks on a repetitive mode plucking empty yellow bins off a shelf and ferrying them several feet to a conveyor.
• The company, which employs 1.5 million people, has seen a reduction of over 100,000 employees from its 2021 peak of 1.6 million. This shift coincides with a rapid expansion of its robotic fleet, which grew from 200,000 robots in 2019 to 520,000 in 2022.

Robotic landscape in India

• Humanoids have gained traction in India too. India's first 3D-printed humanoid robot, named Manav, translates to ‘human’ in Hindi. It is developed by A-SET Training and Research Institute,
• Mitra is a five-foot-tall humanoid robot created by Bengaluru-based startup Invento Robotics. It is crafted from fiberglass, Mitra excels in human-like conversations, navigation, facial recognition, and speech recognition.
• Developed by Hyderabad-based startup H-Bots Robotics, Robocop assists law enforcement in maintaining law, order, and traffic management.
• Introduced by Vistara, an Indian airline, RADA is an AI-based robot designed to automate simple tasks and enhance customer experiences. It has been deployed at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport.
• Deployed at HDFC banks, IRA is a shiny white humanoid robot developed by Kochi-based startup Asimov Robotics. It is designed to assist branch staff, IRA uses AI and ML technologies for tasks such as greeting customers, guiding them to specific counters, and facilitating transactions.

Will robots stump out humans?

• AI is expected to trump millions of jobs as well as generate newer and more innovative jobs.
• The consensus among many experts is that a number of professions will be totally automated in the next five to 10 years.
• The customer service role is turning more automated, as tools like chatbots and virtual assistants handle a broader range of customer inquiries and requests.
• Improvements in autonomous vehicles reduce the need for human drivers, impacting those in both the taxi and rideshare industries.

Editor’s Note

The combination of robotics and artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize the world and humanity's future. A recent study by scientists at the University of Sheffield in the UK found that it makes no sense to create a more advanced artificial intelligence without allowing it to develop in the most natural way - through learning and evolving from real interactions with the world. To facilitate this, AI's architecture must be built like a human brain, with all the physical capabilities and senses of humans, such as sight and touch. The most obvious way to do this is to combine AI with a humanoid robot body. Techno-leaders like Elon Musk and Sam Alman, as well as techno-giants such as Google, Amazon, and Microsoft, have long since reached the same conclusion. It appears that we are entering a new era of artificial intelligence and humanoid robots.