A while back I attended a robot expo in Tokyo. It was actually kind of depressing.
Robots are supposed to be sexy, but much of the technology on display was for old people — you know, intelligent dolls that sense when a dementia patient is trying to get out of bed, engaging them in simple conversation long enough for a human helper to arrive — that sort of thing. Even the cool stuff like powered exoskeletons was being marketed as a way to help young people lift invalid octogenarians into the tub.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry was out in force and had clearly picked automatons for old people as a winner. Doubtless there's lots of money to be made in peddling androids for the aged. Anything to avoid more immigration, right?
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