“Talking Ally”, a robot made by researchers at Toyohashi University of Technology’s Interactions and Communication Design lab, can follow a human’s gaze and respond accordingly. For example, it can make a fuss if the person stops talking to it: STUDY SHOWS HOW OUR BRAINS ARE ABLE TO MULTITASK The robot’s small body looks a bit like a stylized version of the Pixar lamp, a pedestal with a bendy column and an oblong face. In the middle of the face sits a single unblinking eye, so that Talking Ally can maintain eye contact with its person. A second, tucked-away camera tracks the human’s face. Servomotors and springs give the robot a surprising range of movement. Depending on where the human looked, Talking Ally could engage them in conversation about their focus. If the human was watching sports, Talking Ally could respond with sports news pulled from an RSS feed. If the human didn’t pay attention, the robot would try to make the human notice it. If the human turned to lo...