ReadyBot is a kitchen cleaning robot that is already at the prototype stage; the intent is to provide a general purpose robot able to clean the kitchen.
Many countries, especially Japan and parts of Europe, face a significant demographic challenge. Because of changes in birthrates, there are not enough new workers entering the market. Over the next few decades, tens of millions of robots, capable of performing menial and repetitive work, will be required to keep those economies afloat and competitive.
While governments and academics have poured effort into research and made great progress, to this day there is still no "general purpose" or mass-production robots available for household and commercial use.
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Illustrating Classic Heinlein With AI
'Stasis, cold sleep, hibernation, hypothermia, reduced metabolism, call it what you will - the logistics-medicine research teams had found a way to stack people like cordwood and use them when needed.'
Deflector Plasma Screen For Drones ala Star Wars
'If the enemy persists in attacking or even intensifies their power, the density of the plasma in space will suddenly increase, causing it to reflect most of the incoming energy like a mirror.'