Researchers at Columbia Engineering created Emo, a new kind of robot face that can guess and copy human facial expressions as they happen. This makes talking to robots feel more natural and trustworthy. Emo can do this thanks to its special design that includes 26 tiny machines under its skin, and two smart computer programs—one to guess expressions and another to move its face accordingly. This smart way of allowing robots to “speak” without words makes human-robot chats smoother and more fun. Hod Lipson and his team made this breakthrough, which could lead to robots being more helpful at home, in schools, and for emotional support. Read more