There are plenty of players in the field of humanoid robotics, with new entrants arriving to shore up the cyborgs that fall by the wayside. As previously noted, we’d all do well to be a little paranoid about androids, especially given the way in which AI – now considered a foundation technology for future robotic hopes – has run away with itself with few tangible benefits. Eno is designed for home and factory use (Image credit: Genesis AI) Here’s where yet another start-up pops up to showcase how it’ll be doing things differently. Based between Paris and Palo Alto, Genesis AI was founded by robotics engineer Zhou Xian. The company has managed to get investment from former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, among others, while Head of Design Daniel Hundt was formerly at Nuro, an autonomous vehicle start-up. Xian and his team are promising a different take on robotic assistance. Eno at work in a warehouse environment (Image credit: Genesis AI) This is their debut product, the Eno Robot. Whilst decidedly non-human in form, it has been explicitly designed to fulfil almost all of the mobility and agility requirements of a typical adult, eschewing the head-torso-legs form factor in favour of a blend of agility and mobility. Eno’s most obviously analogous appendages are its arms, with their disarmingly (sorry) human-like gloved hands. Everything else has the soft, clinical sheen of a robotic arm or welding machine, or even something from an early 70s sci-fi series. Describing their new baby as ‘radically minimalist’, the Genesis AI team started with a premise of ‘calm intelligence’, positing that future robots – whether at home or elsewhere – need the ability to slip silently from view when not in use. Try putting a mannequin-like machine back in the cupboard every evening and you’ll discover fresh nightmare fuel every morning. Eno in the lab (Image credit: Genesis AI) In contrast, the Eno wants to be an appliance – not entirely devoid of personality, but less prone to trigger unwanted jump scares or trips to the uncanny valley. Under the skin there’s a lot going on, not least a full-stack AI (i.e. all the various levels of software interaction that go into generating movement, response and interaction) developed in house by Genesis AI. The robot blends industrial and domestic design elements (Image credit: Genesis AI) Described as a ‘general-purpose robot’, the AI is said to be sophisticated enough to make Eno a true physical agent, one that can decipher, decode and learn tasks just like agentic AI on a high-end smartphone. The company wants to build trust right out of the box, so one option is for an optional screen that shows a representation of Eno’s processes in real-time. ‘The only path to creating a robot that can truly deliver value to society and excel in the real world is through intentional design and a single, comprehensive system,’ says Xian. The company’s approach also stresses the importance of Eno being able to work alongside humans, rather than as a remote machine in a dark warehouse. Eno has a folding mechanism to compress the robot when not in use (Image credit: Genesis AI) The design intention was to create a machine that enhances human capabilities, with simplified systems that are nevertheless just as dextrous and mobile, given the right task and environment. The articulated panels fold up and down to extend the robot’s height, minimising Eno’s size when not in use. The hands were developed in house and closely mimic the abilities of a human hand increase the robot’s multifunctional abilities. ‘When designing Eno, we started with the question of what it needed to be,’ says Hundt, ‘We reduced the form to its essential elements so that every detail serves a purpose, from the way it moves between environments, to the precision, range and sensitivity required to operate alongside people in the real world.’ Eno Robot hand (Image credit: Genesis AI) Genesis AI hope to have a production model ready by the end of the year, with use cases including ‘factories and laboratories to hospitals and homes. Whether Eno’s appearance will help or hinder it as we traverse the rocky path of robotic acceptance remains to be seen.

Source: wallpaper.com

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