'Sophia the Robot' is coming to Africa, to attend Creative Summit in Egypt

Sophia, the most advanced robot and first artificially intelligent (AI) robot to be granted a citizenship, is coming to Africa.

The Saudi Arabian citizen and first Android citizen in history will attend Egypt’s Creative Industry Summit from April 17 to 18.

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The summit focuses on the latest developments in the advertising, marketing and design fields in Egypt and the Arab world.

“The summit mainly targets six key areas, namely advertising and marketing, art and design, film, radio and television, photography, business innovation, and music. We aim to develop creative industries by putting forth new and innovative ideas in these fields,” said Mai Salama, the Creative Industry Summit’s founding partner.

Salama added that the organisers always seek to showcase the latest breakthroughs in technology, hence the choice of Sophia.

“We have always tried to bring whatever is new and a breakthrough in terms of technology. She’s been very successful, having recently spoken at the UN and Davos. So, we felt we should try to bring the most advanced AI to Egypt.”

About Sophia

A Hanson Robotics invention, Sophia is the world’s most advanced android. The ‘realest’ robot to this day, Sophia’s covering artificial skin consists of organic and non-organic material. The robot is able to express her ‘emotions’ through a number of facial expressions installed via a large number of motors under her ‘skin,’ according to an article by AFP.

To maintain eye contact and ensure the robot is able to recognize human faces, the robot has cameras installed in her eyes and torso. Sophia has been programmed to carry out non-scripted conversations, during which she is able to collect emotional data and form emotional relations.

A recent date she had with Hollywood actor Will Smith has since gone viral.

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Sophia has become an international celebrity, featuring in the Elle Magazine, Good Morning Britain and The Late Show with Jimmy Fallon. She also appeared in the movie ‘The White King’ and has spoken at the United Nations and the World Economic Forum in Davos.