For the past several years, Robotics Business Review and RoboBusiness have teamed up with the Consumer Technology Association to produce conference sessions at CES (formerly known as the Consumer Electronics Show). Previous tracks have included sessions on mobile platforms, drones, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, and service robotics. We are proud to announce that we will be at the CES 2020 event with our track, “Robots For Good”, to be held on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, in Las Vegas.
The overall theme of the day will be to discuss the new ways in which robots are saving the planet, saving lives, helping humans live better lives, and assisting humanity with exploring areas beyond the planet. With media headlines that focus on the negatives of “taking away jobs” or “sentient beings that will destroy humanity”, the “Robots for Good” track will turn that on its head and provide attendees with information about all the good that robots are doing.
Dr. Ken Goldberg was a keynote speaker at RoboBusiness 2018.
The track, which will be held in Room N253 of the North Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center, will begin at 9 a.m. with an opening session titled “A Radically Hopeful Vision of the Future,” by Ken Goldberg, the William S. Floyd Jr. Distinguished Chair in Engineering at UC Berkeley, and a professor of industrial engineering and operations research.
With the headlines about robots and AI stealing jobs, replacing drivers, doctors, and lawyers, many believe that the “singularity” is coming soon, with AI and robots posing an existential threat to humans. In his session, Goldberg will propose an alternative to the singularity that is more inclusive – Multiplicity, in which diverse groups of humans work together with diverse groups of machines to innovate and solve problems.
Goldberg will also share results from his research in robotics, and a global study that suggests how AI can lead to a more productive and inclusive future for humans.
Goldberg has published more than 300 papers in robotics, and holds eight U.S. patents, with citations in more than 15,000 publications. He currently also serves as the Chief Scientist at Ambidextrous Robots, and is on the advisory board of the RoboGlobal ETF.
Saving the oceans and the planet
The next two sessions during the CES 2020 event will discuss how different robotics and AI projects are helping humans to learn more about the world around us, including investigating the oceans, growing crops more efficiently, and assisting in recycling efforts. In the session “Robots Saving the Oceans,” officials from the Mayflower Autonomous Ship project, which aims to collect data on measuring air pressure, water temperature, salinity, and collect water samples to measure levels of pollution in the ocean as it honors the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower ship from Plymouth, England, to the “New World”.
In the session “Robots Preserve the Land”, speakers will discuss how robots are helping humans with assisting in recycling, growing crops, and other “save the planet” types of endeavors.
Helping humans
In the afternoon, the session called “Improving Humans’ Lives” will get a bit more personal, as panelists show off robots that help individuals live better lives, whether it’s elderly patients using a robot to track medication, or robots that help sooth dementia patients or children with autism or going through cancer treatments.
Another afternoon session, “Robots Saving Lives”, will include discussions around health care robotics in the surgical and rehabilitation spaces, giving humans hope for living better lives following injuries or medical procedures that are performed more efficiently through robotic assistance.
Robots in space
The closing session, “Robots in Space and Beyond,” looks to head to the stars to discuss how robots are working with humans to explore the realms beyond Earth. Discover how robots are assisting humans with space exploration, communications across vast distances, and new efforts to go to the Moon and Mars, and beyond.
If you’re attending CES 2020, or if you’re interested in attending, head to this site to register for the RoboBusiness track on “Robots For Good”, on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The session is $400 as a stand-alone conference, and is also included as part of the CES Deluxe Conference Pass. CTA members can save 25% on conference passes, and we also have a limited number of codes that allow for a 25% discount on the conference fee, but let us know immediately if you’re interested.
