A Robot in Every Hone by 2020

The EveR-1 domestic robot which is able to hold a conversation, make eye-contact and appear to express emotions such as joy, anger, sorrow and happiness has been created in South Korea.

The creator of the EveR-1 domestic robot "demonstrates [that] our robotic technologies are at the forefront of the world," according to the robot's creator Baeg Moon-hong who is a senior researcher in the Division for Applied Robot Technology for the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology in Ansan.

I've got the AI film to watch tonight and have got a copy of "I-Robot" so I get a bit scared when they say that they intend to make robots full members of society!

With industrial robots around every corner of the industrialised world, service robots have yet to take off, but Oh Sang Rok of the South Korean Ministry of Information and Communication said "The market size of industrial robots is almost saturated worldwide … but the market of service robots is only now opening ... Social and economic needs for intelligent service robots to support people's daily lives are increasing with the advance of an aging society."

But these new robots are a step-closer to exhibiting homosapien-like qualities. "For now, EveR-1 can be employed as a guide robot at museums and department stores or as an educational model to read books to children," said the creator Baeg.