Bocco Emo

Bocco Emo. © Yukai.

Bocco Emo is the new generation of emotive robots by the Tokyo start-up Yukai, the same one that designed Qoobo, the petting robot. This new little robot expresses its empathy through gestures and sounds, in response to the user’s voice or text messages. It can also react to emojis. When it responds to upbeat messages, its cheeks glow green, and it nods enthusiastically and babbles happily. For negative messages that contain words such as “tired,” its cheeks turn red, it lowers its head and emits a sad groan. It doesn’t require a trigger word to activate because the device can detect the presence of a person. It will be available fall 2019. The price will likely compare to the previous generation, around JPY 30,000 (CAD 360). Kawaii!

⇨ Circuit Breaker, “The Bocco Emo is a smart, playful way to keep in touch with your family.”