New Press Release from GOSY! Softbank's Pepper
Post# of 2217
Softbank's Pepper Robot Contest Winner Partnering with GeckoSystems, an AI Mobile Robot Co.
CONYERS, GA / ACCESSWIRE / July 10, 2015 / GeckoSystems Intl. Corp. (http://www.geckosystems.com/) (OTC Pink: GOSY) (GOSY), announced today that the company is forming a Special Project Team with Fubright Communications Corp., to enable a higher level of safety and cost effective utility for Softbank's personal mobile robot, the Pepper, using the company's "AI Mobile Robot Solutions for Safety, Security and Service(TM)".
The July 8th press release by Fubright headline is: Pepper Application R&D About Collaborative R&D of Autonomous Self-driving Service Robot
Here are the noteworthy excerpts from this press release:
"Fubright Communications Co., Ltd., Tokyo Japan and GeckoSystems Intl. Corp., the Service Robot Development company of the United States have agreed to do collaboration in R&D and marketing of the advanced safe autonomous self-traveling service robot."
"Fubright Communications Inc. a well-known specialist of nursing care service system will aim at the area especially elderly care / watch field and develop a service robot that reduces the burden of the elderly / nursing care workers using advanced AI technologies which GeckoSystems, Inc. has been developing over the years."
"Both companies are confident that their advanced safe service robot will contribute to the Japan rapidly aging society helping elderlies live safer and easier."
"The significance of this sea change event for GeckoSystems is not readily apparent without the context being revealed. In the last two years, the CEO of SoftBank, (which controls Sprint here in the U.S.) has publicly stated that they had spent about $200,000,000 to develop their Pepper personal robot for family care. Recently twenty percent (20%) of Softbank's acquisition of Aldebaran Robotics (The French company that developed the Pepper is now called SoftBank Robotics) was sold to Alibaba Group Holding for $118,000,000 recently. In the same press release, they also revealed that Foxconn Technology Group had also purchased twenty percent (20%) for $118,000,000. ("SoftBank teams up with Alibaba, Foxconn to sell Pepper robot" Simple arithmetic readily reveals that while SoftBank paid $200,000,000 or so for all of Aldebaran, including the development of the Pepper robot. Softbank's CEO has sold forty percent of their Aldebaran acquisition for more than what they paid for all of Aldebaran, including development of the Pepper personal robot. In the last two weeks, SoftBank sold a month's production of Peppers, (1,000 robots) in the first few minutes of being offered online. ("SoftBank sells 1,000 units of its Pepper robot in first minute of online trade" "SoftBank to Offer 1,000 ‘Pepper’ Units on July 31" ) What do these multibillion dollar international Asian companies know?" reflected Martin Spencer, CEO, GeckoSystems Intl. Corp."
"Robotics will become a critical field that catalyzes technological breakthroughs in numerous sectors such as healthcare, public services, research and at home," stated Jack Ma, Executive Chairman and Founder of Alibaba Group. China's eldercare crisis is due to their decades of only one child per family. Therefore the adult children, with many now working elsewhere in China are too few and too far away to care for their aging parents. Japan's eldercare crisis causes differ, but nonetheless pose significant hurdles. ("Why Robots Are the Future of Elder Care"
Fubright won SoftBank's Pepper robot software contest recently with an app known as Ninnin Pepper that allowed the Pepper robot to assist in waking up dementia patients and take their scheduled medicines on time. Pepper also reports to a doctor via Internet if the patient did not consume the pills. On a daily basis, the robot communicates with the patient by asking about their family to stimulate memory and the touch screen tablet on its chest has the capability to send and receive pictures and messages from a family member. ("Japanese humanoid robot called Pepper gets its own app"
In many ways, this is a Japanese language version of the same benefits and functionalities found in GeckoSystems' GeckoChat(TM), a verbal interaction AI system capable of monologues and/or monologues, and GeckoScheduler(TM), an AI system that provides a time and date for execution of various mobile robot benefits.
Foxconn, one of the largest electronics contract manufacturers in the world (that counts Apple as being but one of their marquee customers) understands that this Forbes journalist is correct in that "…Robots Will Be The Biggest Job Creators In World History." While well written, the author does not reveal the extraordinarily quick payback of mobile service robots due to their unattended productivity 7/20/365. GeckoSystems own economic analyses indicate payback as a home appliance of three to four months, in professional healthcare/commercial security of only seven to eight months.
Despite the long time PR campaign by SoftBank, and now Alibaba and Foxconn, some believe that the Pepper robot may not be quite ready for mass adoption, eg. "Robots turn off senior citizens in aging Japan".
However, due to GeckoSystems' world's first in home personal mobile robot trials that have been conducted and documented, GeckoSystems is confident they have the "right stuff" to be very synergistic with Fubright, as does Fubright, in dramatically improving the value proposition of SoftBank's Pepper personal mobile robot.
Beginning in 2009:
In Home Elder Care Robot Trials Begin
Elder Care Robot Trials Begun
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials, Week One
Grandma Reacts to GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials
Grandma Interacts During GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials
Robot Safety Applauded During GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials Reveal Grandma's Hearing Loss
Continuing into 2010:
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials Resume After Holiday Break
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials Revealing Unexpected Family Benefits
GeckoSystems Employs Sensor Fusion in Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Discusses Expansion and Duration of Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Develops New GeckoScheduler(TM) for Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Representative Comments on Japanese Interest in Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials Result in More Japanese Interest
GeckoSystems Improves Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Advances Technologies Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Improves AI Savant Management Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Cost Reduces Sensor Fusion GeckoSPIO(TM) Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Releases World's First Elder Care Robot Trial Videos
GeckoSystems' CEO Updates Stockholders on Progress Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Improves CareBot(TM) Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trials' Caregiver Praises New GeckoScheduler(TM)
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trial Caregiver Shares New Insights
GeckoSystems' Elder Care Robot Trial Caregiver "Looks in" on Mother While Shopping
GeckoSystems Improves Sensor Fusion Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Advances Artificial Intelligence Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems Reduces Sensor Fusion Costs Due to Elder Care Robot Trials
GeckoSystems' Sensor Fusion Breakthrough Lowers Personal Robot Costs
GeckoSystems has also done primary market research, focus group market research, and the most extensive in home personal robot trials in the world.
More noteworthy regarding SoftBank's Pepper robot is this discussion, "Pepper is Getting Ready": "When we talk about the profitability of domestic robots, however, experience tells us that, at the moment, the robots which are profitable are not those which "can do a lot of different things" but those which do one thing and do it well. With the SoftBank business model Pepper can be bought for a more reasonable price than a domestic humanoid robot has ever had, but for Pepper to find its place in the home it will have to show that it is different and will have to demonstrate how its unique ability to recognize emotions from human gestures and tones of voice will be usefully applied in the domestic sphere.
The reality that the Pepper robot cannot presently safely run errands, automatically follow the care receiver and real time sense and avoid moving or unmapped obstacles is a functional deficiency that precludes the Pepper from fully exploiting Fubright's winning SoftBank's Pepper software contest with their "Ninnin Pepper" for aiding those challenged by dementia. This need is why Fubright is partnering with GeckoSystems.
SoftBank is fully aware of the reality that the Japanese heath care insurance system decreed over a year ago that their insurance program would pay 90% of the monthly costs of providing personal mobile robots for eldercare. SoftBank has a billion dollar market opportunity to sell millions of Pepper robots in the next few years. Foxconn wishes to manufacture those millions of Pepper robots for the Japanese and Chinese markets. Alibaba wishes to distribute a Chinese version of the Pepper in China.
Fubright and GeckoSystems want to have their proprietary AI software on every Pepper sold in the world.
The company developed their SafePath(TM) AI mobile robot navigation technologies some years ago to address those very important requirements for any mobile robot to be truly utilitarian (convenient like a home appliance), while being cost effective, some years ago with their linchpin AI mobile robot technology, GeckoNav(TM).
For several years, GeckoSystems has had Japanese representation in the Pacific Rim due to the capable assistance of Mr. Hajime Yasumatsu and his long time associate, Mr. Katsuji Fujii. Due to their hard work in the last 3-4 years, numerous discussions have been initiated and are ongoing. "Lou", one of the company's BaseBot(TM) prototypes, has successfully demonstrated its "loose crowd" level of mobile robot autonomy to several Japanese firms. Most recently, Fubright witnessed a live demonstration in Japan and received training from another Japanese partner of GeckoSystems, iXs Research.
Prior to this agreement to form a Special Project Team to jointly migrate GeckoSystems AI mobile robot self-driving software to the Pepper personal robot, Fubright signed a Memorandum of Understanding with GeckoSystems that includes this necessary Safety Clause:
Both parties understand and agree with the general concerns that mobile robot solutions may be used to lethally harm persons, other living things, property, and a country's infrastructure if terrorists, criminals, or other private or public enemies of peace, security, and tranquility were to secure access to and/or use of them. Therefore both parties completely agree that MSR safety is of the greatest importance in the utilization of MSR technologies. All MSR technologies shared by both parties in any manner will be treated with the utmost secrecy and respect due to that reality and potential.
GeckoSystems has been acknowledged routinely by an internationally recognized market research firm one or more time in each of the last five years and being anywhere from the top one in three to the top one in eight in the world in service robotics.
2015: GeckoSystems Featured as One of Five Key Vendors in Mobile Robotics Market
2014: GeckoSystems Featured as One of Six Key Market Players in Mobile Robotics Industry
2013: GeckoSystems, an AI Mobile Robot Company, Receives 1 of 3 Recognition
2012: GeckoSystems Named One of Eight Key Market Players in Service Robotics Industry
While GeckoSystems' AI mobile robot solutions have been largely unnoticed in the US, many ongoing negotiations continue in Japan and China due to the company's AI mobile robot solutions robust utility and portability to virtually any and all forms of mobile robots whether air, land, or sea. That includes drones, self-driving cars, and essentially all mobility systems requiring complete safety from hitting any obstacles in those situations in which a highly skilled and experienced jet fighter pilot could readily evade.
Due to Mr. Katsuji Fujii's negotiations with Fubright, a tentative licensing agreement for the use of GeckoNav on the Pepper robot has already been reached between GeckoSystems and Fubright. It is nearly an order magnitude greater than what Microsoft receives from OEM's per PC, and on an annual, per year basis to fit SoftBank's pricing strategy in Japan.
"It is very satisfying to make this announcement and present this analysis to all our stockholders, both present and future. After many years of patience by our current 1300+ stockholders, they can continue to be completely confident that the present management will continue to work to maximize their investments in GeckoSystems whether by organic growth or being acquired at a rewarding premium," concluded Spencer.