- Reported that Apple is looking to develop personal home robots
- But the project is in its infancy, so no guarantee anything will come to market
- Apple abandoned its electric vehicle project earlier this year
Apple is considering the possibility of developing personal home robots, according to reports.
Following the much-publicized demise of its electric vehicle project in February, the tech giant is now considering pivoting to focus on another notoriously tough subject to crack – home personal robots, according to Bloomberg.
Apple’s tech experts have been considering robots that follow users about the house, as well as a tabletop device that uses robotics to adjust a display screen, much like mimicking real-life head movements, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources that know the research team.
However, the home robot project – overseen by Apple’s hardware engineering division and artificial intelligence and machine learning group – is still in its infancy, Bloomberg added.
Apple has been trying to diversify its revenue streams for some years – as ideas such as the electric vehicle show – and home robotics is another avenue it is exploring as it seeks to secure future growth for the company.
Some home robots are available already, such as Amazon’s Astro – which is more of a virtual assistant on wheels – although that is only available by invite. Samsung also has Ballie, a smart home hub as well as other things, that is expected to be launched later this year.
Apple has not made any response to the Bloomberg report.
As Apple showed earlier this year, there are many tech projects that are worked on and invested in, sometimes over years, that don’t end up with a product making it to market. So there are no guarantees that home personal robots will end up on the shelves any time soon – they are still a moonshot idea.
