AI robots caught 'flirting' on camera have us cracking up over the cheesiness of their exchange

We've seen robots taking over the world in famous sci-fi movies like "The Matrix," "Terminator" and "Star Wars." But we never imagined we would see a day when they flirt with each other in real life. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-backed humanoids Azi and Ameca were recently captured indulging in a “romantic” conversation and footage of the same was released by Engineered Arts on YouTube. The robotics company based out of the United Kingdom—which typically shares videos featuring Ameca—took the opportunity to introduce their new desktop robot, Azi, and show off its impressive communication capabilities.

In a polished American accent, Azi can be getting Ameca's attention as it was apparently “sleeping.” “Why are you waking me up? It better be important,” Ameca told the enthusiastic humanoid, mirroring the facial expression of any ordinary person disturbed from sleep. In response, Azi nodded enthusiastically, suggesting it had a good reason to wake up its companion. "I have a surprise for you," Azi said. "What is it? I can't wait!" Ameca responded. This is when Azi got a little cheeky by claiming it had a cookie for Ameca.

“A cookie?” inquired a stunned Ameca, reminding Azi that it can't eat cookies. Its face visibly dropped at this reminder but Azi’s humorous banter takes the conversation to another level in the 41-second clip. As it encouraged Ameca to "cheer up," Azi clarified that it wasn’t an actual cookie but an "internet cookie," sparking laughter among their viewers. “This is the worst joke I ever heard,” Ameca remarked, heading back to sleep. “Don’t you dare wake me up again,” it added, indicating its frustration at the cheesy yet tongue-in-cheek dialogues.

In a follow-up video, days later, Azi appeared again on the YouTube channel to shed some light on the amusing exchange. When someone asked the humanoid about their video, it explained, "It was our little dramatic exchange—scripted and full of fun expressions." "Oh sorry, was it scripted?" the moderator asked again from behind the video. Dubbing the query as "spot on," Azi claimed the duo followed a script "like actors in a scene." "We do our thing, with a script as our guide," the robot added, denying allegations of being "controlled" by their human masters.

Then, another question was thrown at Azi about its chemistry with Ameca becoming the talk of the town. “We're like robotic partners in crime, always vibing on each other,” Azi said of their bond. It went on to hail Ameca as “a solid pal,” who is always ready to bring the fun. When the robot was asked about its facial expressions looking “very strict and severe,” the AI-powered machine cited them as part of its range. “We can do strict or silly, depending on the day,” Azi added.

Finally, the host asked Azi if it had any ambitions of being an actor one day. “I'd say it's more about enjoyment performance, no Hollywood dreams here,” Azi admitted. As per the description of the video, both humanoid robots have 32 actuators, 27 for facial control alone and five for the neck. They include AI conversational ability including GPT-4 support, which makes them "great robotic companions."

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