UAE leads in adopting smart technologies and robotics
- 18 Oct 2022
Inayat-ur-Rahman, Business Editor
DUBAI: The UAE has taken a leadership role in the Middle East region with the government sector leading the charge in technology adoption.
Dubai has largely been responsible for changing the mindset when it comes to adopting new technologies.
According to leading financial experts technology trends like Artificial Intelligence and Robotics will dominate the capital markets in the near future.
It is easy to get lost in the plethora of tech products and solutions launched at the biggest technology event in the world, Gitex Global held recently at the Dubai World Trade Center. But one of the things that stood out is a tiny robot that measures just about 22 cm in height and weighs around 2kgs.
Called Miko, this robotic companion for kids is revolutionising child development by harnessing deep-learning AI and advanced emotional intelligence capabilities that deliver personalized and engaging learning experiences.
It supports different formats of engagement such as games, audiovisual content, conversational content, HRI (Human-Robot Interactions), gesture-based content, role-playing games, among many other advanced features.
Sneh Vaswani, Co-founder and CEO, Miko told Gulf Today that with Miko 3, kids can explore thousands of playful learning experiences spanning coding, yoga, games and more. Miko can deliver any content far better than any screen-based media that are available to kids and parents today.”
According to Vaswani, Miko 3 robot leverages machine learning to provide an interactive, emotional experience for kids. “Our team is also developing experiences where kids, for example, can co-create art or even co-write music with Miko 3. This is the first step in our goal of helping Miko develop emotions in the same way that humans do. This is the next stage of personalized experiences that can have a tremendous positive impact on the social, mental and physical well-being of children,” he added.
With the Middle East and Africa toy market expected to reach Dhs30 billion in 2027, Miko, through its partnership with Exertis Mena, its exclusive partners in the region, is making a big push to capture a sizable portion of the market with the launch of its latest Miko robot in Dubai.
Its expansion in this part of the world is part of its strategic global growth plans, having also launched recently in Europe, China and Australia. Just this month, Miko also announced its acquisition of a majority stake in Square Off, a startup known for AI-driven automated board games.
Miko robots and Square Off smart board games will soon communicate, with Miko robots taking on the role of instructors that teach children to play chess and other board games. The acquisition is the latest in a string of bold strategic moves from Miko. Earlier this year, the company announced a partnership with Paramount Consumer Products. In August, Miko 3 became the first kids’ robot to launch an official Disney app. Miko was the only Asian startup to participate in the 2021 Disney Accelerator.
