Google has set up an ethics board to oversee its work in artificial intelligence. The search giant has recently bought several robotics companies, along with Deep Mind, a British firm creating software that tries to help computers think like humans. One of its founders warned artificial intelligence is'number 1 risk for this century,' and believes it could play a part in human extinction. An analyst believes Google is in the best position to create the first ever conscious machine and already has related projects in the place. It recently bought a number of robotics firm, such as Meka pictured, for example. Its most recent Hummingbird search update was created to make Google'more human' - searches can now understand context, like a human brain, for example.

He might look like an extra member of Daft Punk, but Russia's robot humanoid is set to be joining astronauts aboard the International Space Station as early as next year. Scientists at the Gagarin Cosmonauts' Training Centre in Star City Centre, just outside Moscow, have shown off their creation, called SAR-401. Russia is working on its own version of Nasa's Robonaut, which is already lending a hand on the International Space Station – so the two robots might work together in the future. Russia's SAR-401robot humanoid could be joining astronauts aboard the International Space Station as early as next year A slightly earlier model called SAR-400 is scheduled to be blasted into space in 2014. Russia's robonaut is similar to Nasa's as it is not designed to be completely autonomous but is operated remotely from the ground, Spectrum reported.

Daimler, the maker of Mercedes-Benz and Smart cars, has announced that it will start selling a self-driving car by 2020. It is thought the car will be able to drive on its own in most situations but will still hand control back to the driver during difficult situations such as dealing with traffic lights. The move could help Daimler regain its position as the leading luxury car market from its rival BMW. 'We want to be the first to launch autonomous functions in production vehicles. You can be sure: we will accomplish that in this decade,' said Daimler head of development Thomas Weber.

A robot astronaut called Kirobo has made world history by becoming the first robot ever to speak in space. The 13-inch tall Japanese humanoid has been aboard the International Space Station since 10 August and made the broadcast via video link. It said: 'On August 21, 2013, a robot took one small step towards a brighter future for all. I am the world's first talking robot astronaut. A robot astronaut called Kirobo, pictured, has made world history by becoming the first robot ever to speak in space. It said: 'On August 21, 2013, a robot took one small step towards a brighter future for all.

China has built the world's fastest supercomputer - almost twice as fast as the previous U.S. record holder - with speeds equivalent to more than 338 million normal PCs. The Tianhe-2, which means Milky Way 2, was developed by the National University of Defense Technology in China's Changsha city and is capable of sustained computing of 33.86 petaflops per second. That's the equivalent of 33,860 trillion calculations per second, with the average everyday computer performing around 100 million per second (although some are faster and others may be slower). China's supercomputer Tianhe-2 has been declared the Top500 fastest supercomputer title. It was developed by the country's National University of Defense Technology and is capable of operating at the equivalent of 33,860 trillion calculations per second China's Tianhe-2 supercomputer, which means Milky Way 2, knocked the U.S. Department of Energy's Titan machine off the number one spot.

A two-foot high robot with flashing eyes could be the key to helping children cope with autism. Researchers at Vanderbilt University have tested their creation, called Nao, on Aiden, a three year old diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder - and say it could help treat thousands with the condition. The robot is able to speak, move and interact using a series on sensors - and can even tell where Aiden is looking that's to a specially developed cap. Aiden, three and a half, with Nao, his robotic'buddy' that is programmed to help him deal with some of the social problems associated with autism A team of mechanical engineers and autism experts at Vanderbilt University have developed the system and used it to demonstrate that robotic systems may be powerful tools for enhancing the basic social learning skills of children with ASD. Writing in the March issue of the IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering, the researchers report that children with ASD paid more attention to the robot and followed its instructions almost as well as they did those of a human therapist in standard exercises used to develop joint attention skill.

For centuries, mankind had fantasised about the end of the world - when it would come and what form it would take. The Hindus and Buddhists took a decidedly sanguine, long-term view, assuming that the endless cycles of creation and reincarnation would persist for millennia, even aeons. Christians, however, had traditionally been more alarmist. Built into their religion was the concept of "end of days", a Biblical Armageddon which would see Satan's last stand on Earth defeated by the return of Christ in a blaze of glory. While the "elect" would enjoy eternity in the New Jerusalem, everyone else would go to the Other Place to spend the rest of time in torment.

He's handy with a shot glass and customers travel from far and wide to admire him at work. The only strange thing about Carl the bartender is that he's not quite human. The humanoid robot mixes drinks for guests at the Robots Bar and Lounge in Ilmenau, eastern Germany. Carl can mix drinks according to customers' requests and also indulge in small talk, his creator says The robot is the creation of mechatronics engineer Ben Schaefer, who has spent 23 years working in the field. He built Carl from the parts of disused industrial robots from the German firm KUKA.

Driverless cars engender some strongly held opinions but experts say there is one thing beyond argument - we don't have much choice in the matter, they're coming. However, we could be waiting some time: all UK cars predicted to be'highly autonomous' by 2040, but the nation's vehicles won't be fully driverless until 10 years later. And when this does happen in 34 years time, 95 per cent of today's traffic collisions won't take place, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers has suggested. Driverless delay: If you're worried about being driven by your car in the near future you can relax - experts have said vehicles won't be fully autonomous for another 34 years IMechE said fully autonomous cars are further away than many people may have expected as part of its latest driverless vehicle report released on Thursday. While testing is well underway in the US, Tesla has already launched a part-autonomous system and the UK Government has a dedicated fund to speed-up the development of driverless vehicles, the institute said there will be no'Big Bang' for the technology, rather a process of increasing levels of automation over a number of years.

Robotic surgery sounds like the ultimate in safe, efficient and effective 21st-century health care. Instead of a surgeon's potentially fallible human hand, you have a robot with its precision-built mechanical arms able to perform micro-accurate procedures on tissues deep within the body. With robot-assisted surgery, the surgeon sits at a nearby console with a 3D view of the surgical site. If the surgeon's hand develops a tremor, the computer system knows to ignore it. The technology also means surgeons can use finer instruments that cause less damage to the body. In turn, this should reduce blood loss and the need for blood transfusions - and mean that patients recover more quickly.