By RYUICHIRO FUKUOKA/ Staff Writer
February 20, 2025 at 16:41 JST
OSAKA—Will human beings be coexisting with androids, humanoid robots, 50 years from now?
Famed robotics researcher, professor Hiroshi Ishiguro of Osaka University Graduate School, will present his answer at the Osaka Kansai Expo 2025, which opens in April.
Ishiguro has helped design one of the expo’s signature pavilions based on the theme of “amplification of lives.”
He told reporters on Feb. 19 that the exhibition will explore humanity’s ancient attempts to breathe life into clay figures such as “Dogu” and “Haniwa.”
The exhibition will also depict a possible future in which androids have become an integral part of society and daily life.
In the pavilion, adult androids called “Yamatoroids” and child androids called “Asukaroids” (both named after ancient words for areas in Japan) will welcome visitors with eye contact and smiles.
Mobile robots decorated with moss, bamboo and traditional “washi” paper will also guide visitors inside the pavilion.
“I hope this pavilion will get people thinking about what kind of future they want to forge,” Ishiguro said.
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Pavilion producer Hiroshi Ishiguro, center in back row, shows reporters the "Asukaroids," front row, and "Yamatoroids," back row, in Osaka’s Konohana Ward. (Shinnosuke Ito)
