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Welcome aboard Pepper: the robots come with the latest voice and emotion recognition |
EUROPE. Spring 2016 will see Costa Cruises extend its team with what is claimed to be the world’s first humanoid robot. The robot, named “˜Pepper’, will join Costa Cruises staff onboard the Costa Diadema and sister ship AIDAprima.
The deployment of Pepper robots onboard Costa’s ships is part of an exclusive agreement, worth more than €1 million, with French company Aldebaran – a subsidiary of the SoftBank Group.
Said to be capable of reading human emotions, Pepper robots are built to interact with people by communicating through intuitive interfaces including voice and touch. The robots are even able to provide recommendations on restaurants, events and excursions.
Costa Cruises said that the robots, which speak fluent German, Italian and English, will add a new digital dimension to the cruise experience and bolster Costa’s customer service offering.Â
Before securing the job, Pepper undertook an intensive internship programme onboard AIDAstella to display his ability to engage with customers and crew.
Pepper robots have several joints and wheels, enabling them to move fluidly, as well as a 3D camera which allows them to detect people and their movements and expressions.
Costa anticipates that the Pepper robots will join the crew aboard the whole Costa and AIDA fleet by summer 2016.
