Recently it was revealed that Google was buying up robotics companies and planning some kind of moonshot in robotics technology that would change the game in robotics. Google will be combining superior robot vision, arms and wheel systems.
Google only thinks in terms of ambitious objectives like their robotic car project and doubling everyones life expectancy (Calico). So what is Google’s objective with robotics ?
It is a revolution in personal robotics.
Next year there will be 1.25 billion smartphones shipped and most of those will be Google Android phones.
185 million android tablets will ship in 2014
Meanwhile personal robot sales are about one million vacuum robots per year with about ten million total installed in 2014.
There are one million industrial robots.
It is like we are in the computer world before the IBM PC.
We are in the internet age before the Netscape browser.
The pieces are there but the standards and ease of use have not been put together.
Google wants to put together the standard platform for a personal robotics revolution.
Individual applications like a hospital robot are to be left to the army of android OS developers.
Google will need to be looking at the sub-$1000 price levels.
The tablets and smartphones that exist will be the heads of the robots. This is already well underway from other companies.
However, there is no Dell of Robotics. Even if there was Google would still be making a large play to transform robotics just as they did with Android smartphones even though Apple already had the iPhone.
There is voice recognition with Google Talk.
There is improving computer vision.
There are sensors.
There are displays.
What is missing ?
The Plug and Play of accessories the way Microsoft Windows could recognize any device that is added to a Personal Computer.
Companies and people need to be able to put robots and add parts to robots together and it all needs to work together nearly seamlessly and close to instantly.
Controlling and directing the robots needs to be more automated. There needs to be point and click control and more agents and AI that can properly autocomplete what you really want.
Google wants billions of personal robots. They talk about ten years for the revolution.
I believe they want every other google smartphone or tablet to be built into a robot in ten years.
Google does not want to give that is a goal or standard or reveal the scope of their objective and if the date slips to fifteen years that will still be okay.
Right now your droid smartphones and tablets are quadriplegics. They have no arms, legs or wheels.
Droids are everywhere now but you have to carry them.
Google does not know what a world of personal robotics will look like, but they want to unleash the power of millions of developers to create the personal robotics ecosystem.
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Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.