Asimo robot officially 'retired' after more than 20 years of dedication

The human-shaped Asimo robot of the Japanese automaker Honda will officially retire from March 31 after 20 years of continuous dedication.

Honda once described Asimo as "the world's most advanced humanoid robot".

After going public for the first time in 2000, Asimo has become a symbol of pioneering Japanese robotics technology. Asimo has the ability to master the activities of running, hopscotch, using sign language with 5 fingers. However, in recent years Honda has stopped developing Asimo after a final upgrade in 2011 to equip the robot with the ability to autonomously avoid collisions with other people.

In September 2021, Honda announced a plan to develop avatar robots, allowing users to control the robot remotely. The company says the new robot will be equipped with multi-fingered hands and AI-powered remote control functionality.

As Asimo prepared to retire, fans, many of them parents and children, came to Honda's showroom to visit and say goodbye to this child-sized robot (1.2 inches tall). meters and weighs 54 kg). Honda once described Asimo as "the world's most advanced humanoid robot".

In 2002, on the 25th anniversary of Honda listing on the New York Stock Exchange, Asimo appeared at the event and rang the stock market bell to open the trading session.

In 2014, when then-US President Barack Obama visited Japan, the robot Asimo greeted him in English and performed moves like kicking a ball and dancing at the National Museum of New and Innovative Sciences in Japan. Tokyo.

In an announcement on March 27, Honda said that it will continue to sell Asimo products after this robot retires.