This may not change the world, and yet, in some ways it might. Piaggio has designed a robot that can follow a person at up to 22 mph while carrying 40 pounds. The person wears a set of cameras. The robot has its own cameras and tries to match its route to what the person just traveled. There will be a large number of people who, if they had to carry 40 pounds, would just hop in the car. Instead, they could walk, run, or bike and the robot would follow them. While the idea may seem silly, it is less silly than using a few thousand pounds of a vehicle to carry a couple of bags of groceries. The robot will certainly be easier to park. It isn’t available yet, but early adopters may be envied if they’re suddenly getting a lot more done while spending less money and getting in shape.
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“This Robot Will Carry Your Stuff And Follow You Around” – MIT Technology Review
Pretending Not To Panic 