During the final 24 hours of its crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo, family robot Jibo closes in on $1.7M from almost 4,000 backers. 
Created Dr. Cynthia Breazeal, the Jibo is the perfect robot for every member of the family. Standing at 11 inches tall and weighing only 6 pounds, the interactive companion brings intelligence, helpfulness and personality to every member. Jibo performs the following tasks:
- Photographer: Jibo is your on-demand cameraman. Using natural cues like movement, speech commands, and face and smile detection to know when someone’s posing for a picture, he’ll automatically capture your most precious moments on photo or video so you can stay part of the action.
- Minder and Messenger: Jibo is a hands-free helper with a personal touch. You can ask Jibo, directly or via the Jibo Link app (on iOS and Android), to take voice messages or remind you of things you need to do. Since he recognizes you and each member of your household, and can interact with natural social cues, Jibo can deliver the right messages to the right people at the right time. Jibo brings all of this to you in a fun, natural and polite way that saves you from yet another beeping device and allows you to stay engaged in what you’re doing. You can also add Jiboticons to your messages and reminders that Jibo will perform with entertaining animations and movement to bring them to life.
Storyteller: Jibo is a theatrical performer and interactive storyteller just for you. As Jibo tells stories, he can look at you and respond using sound effects, graphics and physical movements to keep you engaged and delighted — all while supporting playful learning for kids.
- Communication Avatar: Jibo turns phone calls and video chat into active participation. His see-and-track camera makes it easy for you turn and look at people. His physical expressiveness allows you to show what you are feeling in a new way. With Jibo’s emotive telepresence abilities, you feel more like you are actually there, emotionally present, and able to participate even when you can’t be there in person.
- Delightful Companion: It’s not just what Jibo helps you with, it’s how he does it. Jibo has a physical presence like an attentive companion. With helpfulness and heart, Jibo will put a smile on your face and make your life better.
In the most recent update, Dr. Breazel and the Jibo shared details of Jibo and its history. “When I first met Jibo, he was just a little flat-headed little prototype in 2013. Now, he’s fun, engaging and inspiring thousands. We’ve put together JIbo’s ‘Baby Bot’ video to show you just how far Jibo has come in his development. Of course his skills and abilities will continue to evolve as we work to bring him to your home!”
Dr. Breazeal recently stated, “We’ve achieved greatness in the computing and social media revolutions. The next wave, emotive computer, is upon us and Jibo is transformative, social and emotive robot that will help people thrive like part of the family.” “Jibo is the first in a new class of family robotics that will humanize information, apps and services, and ultimately will help people and families affordably address fundamental human needs that require high-touch engagement for the best human outcomes like education, independent aging and health management in the convenience of their home.”
Currently, Jibo has raised 1,693,063. Backers have until midnight this evening (August 15th) to donate to the project.
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