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Amazon Has a Top-Secret Plan to Build Home Robots (bloomberg.com)
After making smart speakers a household product (at least to some), Amazon seems to have found its next big consumer product: robots. Amazon is building smart robots that are equipped with cameras that let them drive around homes, Bloomberg reported Monday. These robots could launch as soon as next year. From the report: Codenamed "Vesta," after the Roman goddess of the hearth, home and family, the project is overseen by Gregg Zehr, who runs Amazon's Lab126 hardware research and development division based in Sunnyvale, California. Lab126 is responsible for Amazon devices such as the Echo speakers, Fire TV set-top-boxes, Fire tablets and the ill-fated Fire Phone.
The Vesta project originated a few years ago, but this year Amazon began to aggressively ramp up hiring. There are dozens of listings on the Lab 126 Jobs page for openings like "Software Engineer, Robotics" and "Principle Sensors Engineer." People briefed on the plan say the company hopes to begin seeding the robots in employees' homes by the end of this year, and potentially with consumers as early as 2019, though the timeline could change, and Amazon hardware projects are sometimes killed during gestation.
The Vesta project originated a few years ago, but this year Amazon began to aggressively ramp up hiring. There are dozens of listings on the Lab 126 Jobs page for openings like "Software Engineer, Robotics" and "Principle Sensors Engineer." People briefed on the plan say the company hopes to begin seeding the robots in employees' homes by the end of this year, and potentially with consumers as early as 2019, though the timeline could change, and Amazon hardware projects are sometimes killed during gestation.
I assume.... and perhaps it's the Will Smith from tested.com
"Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
not so "top-secret" if I can read about it on slashdot
Prime membership unlocks multiple new positions!
There is no way in the shady side of hell that I would ever let an Amazon robot inside my home. Given the IoT security problems and the like, I couldn't trust it not to get hacked by voyeur or have it collect data from some of the most intimate parts of my life. Amazon can go suck some huge green balls!
"No matter what I said before, please tell the robot to stop killing Jehova's Witnesses when they come to the door."
Does it involve mycleanpc.com?
I sort of expect that nobody who is alive today will see it be a reality, however.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
Is he trying to send us a secret message about the amazon clouds evil plans?
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
Amazon's job site has it right. The article author has it wrong. A principal is a chief or head, particularly of a school. Principal can also be used as an adjective meaning “first or highest in rank, importance, or value,” as in The principal objective of this article is to teach you the difference between two words. A principle, on the other hand, is “rule of action or conduct” or “a fundamental doctrine or tenet.” http://www.dictionary.com/e/pr...
A roaming bot with a camera could be a big source of sales and related spam. The bot could tell what's worn out or missing from your home, and forward suggestions of replacement products of a matching size and style preference to Alexa, your email inbox, and/or web ads. It could become the ultimate targeted spam engine: Truman Show for the masses.
Table-ized A.I.
.... "I'm sorry Jeff, I'm afraid I can't do that."
This is my opinion. To make sure you don't steal it, it's covered by the DMCA.
of having trojan horses inside their homes, why not.
Take an Alexa, stick some wheels on it and a motor and voila, home robot. Who's surprised?
The main difference between an Amazon, Google or FB robot or any smart assistant is loyalty. All the shows and cartoons we grew up that had robots - we still wish for - have their loyalty to us, the owners. They assist us, perform tasks for us, and protect us, till their own demise if necessary.
Today's "robots" won't be "owned" by us. You will will "lease the right to use them for X period of time". Make no mistake, these self moving spy devices will maintain their allegiance to the corporate overlord for the sole purpose of injecting themselves into your most personal thoughts and decisions, in the very fabric of your personal life so they can continually monitor, digest, live stream and sell to the highest bidder. oh, and share with any acronym agency when the secret court demands.
Even if they "agree" not sell your data directly - it will be completely scrap able via api's.
Rosie, quick, get me a fire extinguisher, the sauce has started on fire!
Mrs. Jetson, I see your extinguisher is getting old. Would you not prefer a new extinguisher certified in all 50 states including the new California standard? I find 7 models available, 4 with prime memberships and 2 with same day shipping? Shall I order the highest rated extinguisher for you?
No! Rosie, quick! bring me the one under the sink!
I'm sorry Mrs. Jetson, I see that your existing extinguisher does not comply with the latest OSHA standards, and as such, liability exclusions in section 34, sub paragraph 15 of the End user Licence agreement mandate I am not allowed to interface with non-compliant items. Would you like me to tell read that sub paragraph to you?
No thank you Rosie. the kitchen just burned down.
Amazon marketing announces new project formerly code named Vesta
There, is that about right?
I have mod points and I am not afraid to use them
So the news is that Amazon might build a "home robot" but nobody knows what it might do. Have Alexa follow you around the house? Great... That's underwhelming to say the least.
What could you possibly do with small floor based robot with no limbs? The only useful thing I can think of is to remove the camera and stick a vacuum cleaner in there. I'm sure no one has thought of that yet...
listened, for a little bit, to your rant about /. i cannot help but wonder why buy /.? why not just start your own version of /.? and make it the way you would like to see /.?
A machine that can clean my 3 story home; no, I am not joking. This machine also has to be able to repair and maintain my home. I would respectfully suggest getting this request "full filled." Honestly, I am already looking. Cooking will be the next requested upgrade.
Well, using accidents that happen the home would be a good way to test the device. Also, the test that simulates a Tornado.
Should have been more suspicious about that promo code, CIAFBIFSB
Not any more they don't.
We should learn what we need to know about issues, before we decide what we need to feel about them.
The key phrase: "the company hopes to begin seeding the robots in employees' homes". The pool of Google employees is a demographic that relates to no other demographic in the world except other massive Silicon Valley companies or Microsoft. What other group is extremely well educated, has a high income, an extremely skewed rate of people on the Asperger spectrum, very limited cultural diversity, a glaring lack of women, and is completely immersed in technology?
Let's face it: Google workers often don't even have a home life. They're at work all the time. Some of them live in dorms or sleep in their cars.
So how is testing with that group going to be any help when it comes to making a robot work with normal households? Normal homes have old people, babies, children, pets, visitors, repair workers, cleaning people, etc. There are shut ins and people with physical and mental impairments. It can be a changing cast of characters or a fixed set of people.
Just like facial recognition, there will not be enough diversity to cover real world situations. Xbox face tracking failed at first because the training sets were mostly white men, so when women or people of different backgrounds were trying to use the system they were not recognized as trackable faces. Same with Apple face recognition software.
Silicon Valley never learns. They are in a near impenetrable bubble of their own making. When it comes to deployment in the real world, they always come up short. (Now think about how well self driving cars are going to perform when they are widely used...)
Why is Snark Required?