Personalizing Interactions

In her quest to design socially assistive robots--robots that provide social, not physical, support in realms like rehabilitation, education, and therapy--she realized that personalizing interactions would boost both engagement and outcomes. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has made that easier, though as always, surprises are never far when human beings are involved. Here, Matarić shares what she's learned about meeting people where they are. Let's talk about your work on socially assistive robots. You've said that having kids inspired you to build robots that help people. How did that interest develop into the mission of supporting specific behavioral interventions in health, wellness, and education?