Minds of their own.

L ike a miniature Segway with eyes, a robot built from 3D printed plastic does laps around a cubicle here at Brain Corporation, having learned in a matter of minutes to avoid bumping into walls as it roams. As eyeRover scoots away, Peter O'Connor, a staff scientist at the robotics software company, steps into its route. Using a remote control unit, he briefly takes control of the foot-tall robot and steers it around his feet, much as a parent might help a toddler learn to avoid a coffee table. On the next lap, eyeRover whisks around the obstacle all by itself. EyeRover may look like a toy, but it's packed with some of the most advanced robotic technology ever devised, including a prototype computing platform designed to emulate the human brain. Unlike conventional computer chips and software, which execute a linear sequence of tasks, this new approach—called neuromorphic computing—carries out processing and memory tasks simultaneously, just as our brains do for complex tasks such as vision and hearing. Many researchers believe that neuro-morphic computing is at the threshold Minds of their own Novel neuromorphic chips and software should provide robots with unrivaled perceptual skills EyeRover negotiates obstacles, guided by software that emulates the brain.