Pleo “Life Form” by Furby Co-Creator

By Michael Santo
Contributing Writer, RealTechNews

Not long ago we told you about the decision by Sony to drop the AIBO and QRIO. Now some good news. After 5 years, the co-creator of the Furby (with Dave Thomas), Caleb Chung, has a new “life form”, Pleo. Made by Ugobe, it is designed to resemble a one-week-old sauropod.

Pleo runs on a sophisticated operating system termed “LifeOS” by (Ugobe CEO Bob) Christopher. Emotions are configured in an artificial intelligence engine using more than 50 algorithms to simulate hormones and sophisticated emotions. Christopher says Pleo has its own distinct personality–not quite dinosaur, not quite human.

Christopher says all the life forms made by Ugobe must obey three laws. They must feel and convey emotion, meaning they feel playful or angry and shows those emotions through either a cheerful or frustrated “squawk.” They also must be aware of themselves and their environment, so they know if they’re at the edge of a table and need to avoid falling. Third, they must evolve over time. Source: PC World

We Say: This sounds really cool. In terms of looks, it kind of reminds me of Littlefoot from those Land Before Time movies or maybe a young Aladar from the Dinosaur movie. Ugobe will sell personality modules to change and add behaviors, and hopes to sell a software development kit. Besides showing it at the DEMO technology conference tomorrow in Phoenix, Ugobe will have a press conference at the San Francisco Zoo later this month or in March (which seems very appropriate for a sauropod, doesn’t it?). Pleo is expected to sell for $199 and will be available in time for the holiday season.