Editors’ Note: This feature appears as it was published in the spring 2018 edition of UT Dallas Magazine. Titles or faculty members listed may have changed since that time.
“If we are smarter and focused on win-win type of results, AI could help proficiently distribute the world’s existing resources like food and energy.”
That’s what Sophia, a humanoid robot created by David Hanson PhD’07, said during a 2017 United Nations meeting on artificial intelligence. Sophia, designed to look like Audrey Hepburn, even had an interview with United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed.
The robot has made appearances on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Good Morning Britain and the South by Southwest conference in Austin.
Hanson, a distinguished alumnus, is founder and chief scientist at Hanson Robotics. He earned a doctorate in aesthetic studies.
