AIM: The Future of Healthcare is Driverless, Augmented, and Intelligent
Present Day
For most of the elderly population, the complexities of advanced technology are too great to deal with. Their first aim of a keyboard is the shutdown button. With the rise of robotics, however, could we then be able to make technology far less complex for the aging population to use? Say hello to ElliQ – the first ever intuition robot designed specifically to help aging adults maintain a healthy level of mental and social activity!
ElliQ serves as a simple but intuitive robot which helps the elderly remain connected and engaged. As a result, users will be able to keep learning and decrease any sense of loneliness they might have. The robot is a companion, first and foremost, as it gives off movement, lighting, and sound which convey emotional support.
It’s also proactively engaging with its users by offering to read the news, play some music, or read an audiobook. The robot will help connect you with friends and family, whether by phone, text, social media, or video chat. And lastly, ElliQ serves as a coach for the elderly, where each adult will be able to set personal goals as the robot helps you maintain them.
Near Future
Five to ten years from now, intuition robotics will be doing much more than keeping the aging population company. Any sector where intuition is required – whether it be gambling, military, healthcare, etc. – robots like ElliQ will be there to get the job done. We’ve already seen what artificial intelligence is capable of when it defeated the best human poker players. There it showed an AI’s ability to bluff – which is an intuitive capability.
In the next decade, we will witness the rise of the bluffing robots. What that might entail will largely be dependent upon which sector these robots are working in. In the military, they’ll develop ways of engaging the enemy by pretending to be their friend, thus allowing them to extract crucial information. In healthcare, intuitive robots will be able to constantly interact with patients in or out of a hospital. By getting the patients to open up, the information that is gathered from their conversation will help doctors find the best therapies (or even cures) for whatever ails them.
“Using “Natural Communication” such as body language that conveys emotion, speech interface, sounds, lights and images to express herself, ELLI•Q is emotive, autonomous, and easily understood. Using machine learning, she learns the preferences, behaviour and personality of her owner, and proactively recommends activities based on its learning and based on recommendations by family. ELLI•Q also has the ability to monitor wellness and the environment in the home.”
– Intuition Robotics
FAR FUTURE
Thirty to fifty years from now might seem like far away, but then I’m constantly reminded that the ’90s were nearly thirty years ago as well. Time flies, as the old expression goes, but then so does the future. In this timeframe, intuitive robotics will have already surpassed the human species in both cognitive intelligence and emotional intelligence. They’ll be far more intuitive than us and far more cunning as well.
If everything goes well, there’ll be a peaceful relationship between humans and robots. Their advanced sense of intuition will help them withstand prolonged conversations which require wit, humor, and clarity. They’ll become our guardians – our nannies. While, at the same time, they might very well become our archivists – the only reason why future generations will know we once existed.
About the author
B.J. Murphy is the Editor and Social Media Manager of Serious Wonder. He is a futurist, philosopher, activist, author and poet. B.J. is an Affiliate Scholar for the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) and an Ambassador for the robotics company Humai.
You may also like
